


Complicated

by orphan_account



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: :), Cross-Posted on Tumblr, Emotional Baggage, F/F, F/M, I AM SO BAD AT DESCRIPTIONS AND TAGGING DONT BE MAD I SWEAR ITS GOOD, I love my OC, Inspired by The Vampire Diaries, Minor Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, Unrequited Love, Vampires, also on Wattpad, i love damon salavatore, i worked on this for four days pls be nice, im bad at tags, ok im done i hope you enjoy, pretty slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-29
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:21:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 38,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23601487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: when anabella king returned to mystic falls to surprise her best friend, stefan salvatore, the last person she really wanted to see was his arrogant older brother. but when the town suffers continuous doom, it is up to them to put aside their past and do everything they can to keep their town safe.d.s x a.k(starting on 1x09 of the vampire diaries)
Relationships: Alaric Saltzman/Damon Salvatore, Bonnie Bennett/Damon Salvatore, Caroline Forbes/Damon Salvatore, Caroline Forbes/Stefan Salvatore, Damon Salvatore/Original Female Character(s), Damon Salvatore/Stefan Salvatore, Elena Gilbert/Damon Salvatore, Elena Gilbert/Damon Salvatore/Stefan Salvatore, Elena Gilbert/Stefan Salvatore, Katherine Pierce/Damon Salvatore, Katherine Pierce/Stefan Salvatore, Klaus Mikaelson/Damon Salvatore, Klaus Mikaelson/Original Female Character(s), Klaus Mikaelson/Stefan Salvatore, Rebekah Mikaelson/Stefan Salvatore, Stefan Salvatore/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 20





	1. History Repeating

**Author's Note:**

> thank u for reading !! so thankful that u actually managed to get past that god awful cringey summary, but i suck terribly at them :( but no worries! because i'm a lot better at the actual writing part (hopefully). im open to CONSTRUCTIVE critisicm but pls be nice i worked rlly hard to make this good <3 (p.s. each chapter will be an entire episode of tvd, so they're gonna be kinda long, just a warning for those of u with short attention spans like me hehe) enjoy !!! -luna

_**Mystic Falls, Present Day** _

  
  
"Hey, Lexi! Remember me? You were supposed to come pick me up two hours ago, what the hell happened? Call me back. _Now_ ," Bella King growled down her phone, leaving what was probably the three hundredth message on her friend's voicemail.

Bella's green eyes watched the clock on her phone tick by another twenty minutes. You would think after almost three centuries, she would have learned how to have a little patience. But you would be wrong. She twirled her long, red hair between her fingers, scanning the humans and cars that raced around her as she sat, bored and frustrated, on top of her purple suitcase. With a huff of defeat, the vampire stood, taking hold of her suitcase and flagging down a yellow taxi. The driver kindly assisted the redhead by putting her belongings in his trunk, even taking the extra liberty of holding the car door open for her as she jumped in gracefully with a grateful nod.

"Where you headed, kid?" the driver asked casually, starting the engine of the taxi and waiting for cars to go by so he can pull out onto the road. Bella scoffed at the passing nickname. Little does he know she was almost three hundred years old; not really a ' _kid_ ' anymore.

"Mystic Falls," she replied with a curt smile. The driver began his journey, running the meter as he turned onto the road towards Mystic Falls.

Bella whipped out her phone again, dialling Lexi's number once last time. She held the phone to her ear, hoping and praying that the blonde would suddenly decide that it would be worthwhile to answer her best friend of the last two centuries that she so rudely abandoned at the airport. But she didn't. The familiar beeping and outgoing message bubbled an anger inside of the redhead that she desperately tried to push back down.

"Listen, I don't know what game you're trying to play but it's not funny anymore. I'm in a taxi on my way to Mystic Falls, and you better have a _really_ good explanation as to why you're not answering your phone." Bella snarled irately into the phone, earning an amused chuckle from the human taxi driver. She spotted the welcoming sign, meaning they had just entered Mystic Falls.

"Something funny?" The vampire interrogated, looking at the man through the rear-view mirror with a dangerous glint in her emerald eyes.

"No, no. I'm sorry, I just wasn't expecting so much aggression from such a pretty girl," he said creepily, returning her glare through the mirror. Bella's anger boiled inside of her even more. She focused her eyes into his.

"Shut up and keep driving." she compelled impatiently, watching the driver close his mouth and blankly stare back out onto the road. The redhead huffed again, crossing her arms and staring out of the window into the acres of greenery that blurred beside her with only one question playing over and over on a loop in her mind.

_Where the hell was Lexi?_

* * *

Wiping the driver's blood from her chin (what can she say, she was hungry and he deserved it), Bella dragged her suitcase along the pathway and up the porch, stopping just before the front door of the Salvatore Boarding House. She messed conceitedly with her ginger hair, a wave of sudden excitement shuddering through her, and finally, she lifted her small hand to alert her arrival to the household.

Within no time, Bella heard the door handle move on the inside and she plastered a warm smile over her lips."Happy-" the redhead began as the door swiftly swung open, but her greeting was interrupted as the wrong Salvatore stood in the doorway. A flash of surprise reflected in Damon Salvatore's icy blue eyes, quickly replaced by his ridiculous smugness; a cocky grin etched onto his face like a default and he leaned casually against the door when he instantly recognised the short, red-haired vampire waiting on his porch.

"You're not Stefan." was all Bella could spit out, Damon's unexpected presence leaving her slightly shocked. She shook off the feeling, crossing her arms defensively and letting their gaze hold for a moment before the dark-haired vampire opened his mouth.

"Anabella King," he stated, almost in disbelief at the vampire like she was some sort of ancient legend that had materialised in front of him, "Long time, no see."

"Not long enough, Damon Salvatore," she quipped, a sarcastic grin emerging on her face, subconsciously settling in to their century-old frenemy dynamic without a second thought. Trying not to get distracted by the older Salvatore, she quickly changed the subject to the real reason behind her surprise visit to Mystic Falls. "Stefan around?"

Before Damon could give a snarky answer, right on cue, Stefan Salvatore, the youngest of the three vampires, revealed himself. "Damon, what-" he began interrogating his older brother, until his green eyes widened at the sight of his red-haired best friend standing on his doorstep. " _No_! No way! Anabella!" he exclaimed excitedly, pushing past Damon to engulf Bella in a rib-shattering hug as they chuckled into each other's necks.

"Stef- Stefan, can't- can't breathe." Bella choked out, tapping Stefan on the back for him to release her from his playful grip.

"Sorry, sorry. It's just- wow, I can't believe you're here! What brings you to Mystic Falls?" Stefan questioned lightly, gesturing for his friend to come in, earning a snide groan from Damon which the two other vampires ignored. Bella wheeled her suitcase into the threshold of the Salvatore house, hearing the click of the front door that Damon closed. The three stood in the foyer, the dark-haired vampire surveying the newcomer and nursing his mug of coffee in his hands.

"Well, Lexi told me she was coming to see you for your birthday, but I couldn't get any flights out of Italy until last night, so... happy _belated_ 162nd birthday, Grandpa!" Bella congratulated, holding her arms out in the way a magician would after executing a brilliant trick with a wide, excitable grin stretching across her face. Damon and Stefan wince slightly at the mention of her now-dead best friend - but the female vampire was oblivious as she slipped off her black leather jacket, exposing her collarbones and her shoulder blades and a little cleavage in her navy tank-top. The older Salvatore shook away thoughts of Lexi and observed his frenemy's pale, freckled skin. 

"First of all, you're _way_ too old to be calling _me_ grandpa, second of all, thank you. It's really nice seeing you, Anabella." Stefan replied, trying to hide his sorrow at the the thought of Lexi's frozen form desiccating right in front of his eyes.

Draping her jacket over her arm, Bella corrected her friend, "Oh, it's Bella now."

Stefan smiled at her new nickname, nodding with approval, "I like it. Much more modern." he complimented before Damon interrupted.

"Bella? How 'Twilight' of you. A little on the nose, don't you think?" he jeered insensitively, earning an eye roll from the redhead.

"No relation, her name was short for _Isa_ bella. Besides, your name _literally_ means 'demon' in German. Little on the nose, don't you think?" Bella quipped back in defence of her nickname through a sly smirk at the older Salvatore, who merely took a sip from his coffee and raised his eyebrows in response. The red-haired vampire quickly changed the subject, glancing between the brothers, "So, where is Lexi anyways? She was supposed to pick me up from the airport but she hasn't been answering her phone."

Stefan stalled for a moment, anxiety rolling in his stomach at the thought of having to explain that their best friend had been killed.

"She left," Damon stated bluntly, avoiding eye contact with her to take another gulp of his coffee. The younger Salvatore so desperately wanted to tell his friend the truth, he felt it eating away at him already, but he understood why Damon lied. He _had_ to. If Bella were to find out that Lexi had been murdered by _anyone_ , she wouldn't stop until her death was avenged and she watched the culprit take their last breath at her hands. If Bella were to find out it was _Damon_ who murdered her best friend, well, Stefan was sure she'd find a punishment much more fitting than the kindness of death. Damon and Stefan had seen her at her most barbaric, and they knew that when she crosses the very thin line of vampire to savage, sadistic, vindictive monster, it's ten times harder to pull her back. Because Bella, for lack of a better term, was batshit crazy.

"She... left?" Bella repeated, crossing her arms over her chest again. She didn't believe him, and he could tell. "Did she say where she was going?"

"Nope. Said she'd send a postcard, though," Damon joked, sending a wink in her direction and strolling away from his fellow vampires, further into the foyer of the boarding house. Distracted, just as the dark-haired vampire planned, Bella's green eyes flickered over to Stefan with an unamused glint in her eye.

"Stefan, please remind me why you let vermin back into your house," the female vampire insulted sweetly, watching Damon turn back to them with a faux look of hurt staining his features.

"Vermin is better than a whore," he retorted, raising his eyebrows wildly as Stefan groaned at their sudden childish squabbling.

"Jesus, do you two ever get tired of bickering?" the youngest vampire inquired frustratedly. Damon lifted a finger to his chin, pretending to think; he shook his head as if he'd come up with a conclusion.

"They call it 'frenemies' for a reason, little brother," he said, leaning up casually against the doorway to the study.

"Sorry Stef," Bella apologised, turning to her best friend in search of a new conversation, "Never-mind him, we have a lot of catching up to do."

"Oh, yes, you _do_ ," Damon agreed ominously, a suspicious glint in his blue eyes as he squinted at the redhead. 

"What?" Bella looked up at her best friend, with concern melting over her face, she began questioning him frantically, "Stefan, why is he looking at me like that? What the hell happened while I was gone?"

Bella's mind raced, going to the worst ideas when Stefan suggested they go to his room to talk, a place away from Damon's irritating comments so he could explain what had been happening in Mystic Falls since her sudden disappearance.

And honestly, whatever she was expecting did not, in any way, shape or form, live up to the story he span about Elena Gilbert, the doppelgänger of the one and only Katherine Pierce. "You have _got_ to be kidding me, Stef. Do I seriously have to start babysitting you and Damon because it seems like the two of you have a hard time staying out of trouble." Bella groaned, slapping her forehead and falling back onto Stefan's bed.

"Bella, I know what it sounds like but I promise you Elena is nothing like Katherine," Stefan defended softly, "I made sure of it."

"Oh, so you _stalked_ her too? I thought Lexi and I raised you better than this."

"Only to make sure she wasn't Katherine!"

"Okay, fine," Bella began, letting her best friend's defences settle into her brain. She sat up straight to make eye contact with him. "So what are you gonna do if she finds out that she's a spitting image of your dead, five hundred year old vampire ex-girlfriend? I mean, I'd be pretty pissed, to be honest."

"She won't find out. And, even by some miraculous chance that someone tells her-"

" _Damon_ ," Bella interrupted, shaking her head despondently at the thought of her friend's own brother trying to ruin his chance of love. It wasn't an idea far from reality.

"I'm sure we can get past it. She's pretty understanding about... all of this." Stefan promised. 

The ginger sighed despite the small smile creeping onto her face. "Lucky you, everyone I've dated is _dead_." she stated impassively, rising from Stefan's bed to fiddle with some knickknacks on his desk. The lack of emotion in her voice alarmed the youngest Salvatore. He looked up at his friend suspiciously, eyeing her as she absentmindedly stared at a framed picture she found of the two at what looked like the top of Mount Everest. In the blink of an eye, Stefan flashed over to his friend, staring intensely at the redhead who jumped at his sudden movement.

"Woah, easy tiger," she chuckled, giving him a weird look when he wouldn't stop staring.

"Arabella, look at me," Stefan instructed with a tone of seriousness that made Bella lock eyes with her best friend. She furrowed her eyebrow as his eyes scanned hers, searching for any signs that she could have her humanity switched off. She then swatted him away defensively.

"Don't worry, Stefan, I have my humanity back on. Honestly," she reassured, patting the brown haired vampire on the shoulder for good measure. He still didn't move, squinting his eyes as if it would help him see through a lie. "Seriously, Stefan, I've been an emotional wreck since '77. I promise."

Stefan eventually relaxed, choosing to believe his best friend and sitting himself at his desk. "I'm sorry, Bella. You're- you're really good at hiding it when it's off." he explained, rubbing his forehead stressfully.

"I know, it's fine. I'm just... I don't know." the female vampire sighed, but she offered him a comforting smile. "I have everything under control. You don't have to worry about me."

The two vampires let their gaze hold, revelling silently in the peace and comfort they brought to one another. "So, how long do you plan on staying in Mystic Falls?" Stefan asked curiously.

"As long as you want me here, little Salvatore. I'm kinda done with the travelling stint for now. Me and Lexi _were_ gonna move to Dubai once I got back but I guess not now that she's decided to play Houdini." Bella explained, catching onto Stefan's sombre smile. In all honesty, he was tearing up inside: his mind was flooding mercilessly with the guilt of lying straight to her face about their friend's whereabouts. Then he thought of Elena, poor, defenceless, human Elena Gilbert, and the feeling just kept piling on.

"Okay, I'll bite," the redhead scoffed at her own ridiculous pun, "What's eating away at that little brain of yours?"

Stefan sighed, hanging his head low with his elbows propped up on his knees. "I was, uh, actually thinking about leaving Mystic Falls," he admitted, raising his head to watch Bella's face fall from concerned to confused, "All I've done since my arrival is put Elena in danger. Especially with Damon in town, gallivanting around planning god knows what... After I make sure things will be safe for her here, I should probably leave."

"Then we'll leave." Cassie frowned. Stefan Salvatore giving up wasn’t a sight she was accustomed to; she had been with him during some of his darkest times, and at the end of it all he managed to keep going. But this time, there was something different - he was giving up for the sake of someone he _loves_. “I hear Dubai is _beautiful_ this time of year.”

* * *

Bella King's fiery red hair bounced against her shoulders as she hopped down the stairwell, step by step, behind Stefan before he left the house with a small smile to meet with the infamous Elena Gilbert.

The small heels of her boots clicked loudly against the old wooden floorboards as the vampire made her way to the study, on a mission for the sweet release of alcohol. She flashed her way over to the drinks stand and picked up a crystal glass, filling it with ice and then poured herself a generous glass of bourbon from Damon’s exclusive, respectable assemblage of alcoholic beverages. Grinning, she knew that helping herself to his precious stash was a sure-fire way to piss him off. 

With the ice-cold glass secure in her hand, Bella strutted thoughtfully over to the Salvatore family’s extensive collection of books, scanning her attentive eyes over each dusty spine, distracting herself from the boredom that began to settle on her shoulders without Stefan or a warm human vein around. 

After taking another sip from her drink, Bella felt the presence of somebody else in the room. She silently turned to have her back facing the bookshelf, arms crossed over her chest nonchalantly as her eyes scanned the room intently like the books. The redhead focused her hearing, the tiniest sound of a floorboard creaking ringing in her ear and her head immediately shifted to her right. A guileful side-grin emerged upon her lips as she leisurely paced to the drinks stand to put down her glass, pinning her hearing towards the source of the intrusion once again, ensuring to herself it was still in its position. In the blink of an eye, Bella flashed at vampire speed past the open doorway, tacking a helpless Damon Salvatore harshly against the wall. Just as she’d suspected.

The arrogant vampire choked out a dark laugh despite being lifted two feet from the ground at the throat, by a vampire who was almost a century and a half stronger than him.

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you it was rude to sneak up on a lady, Mr. Salvatore?” Bella asked rhetorically, squeezing slightly harder around her frenemy's throat but Damon just raised a brow in response. Her devilish smirk matched his own as she painfully slowly lowered him to the safety of the ground, her hand lingering on his neck. 

"Guess not, Miss. King," Damon retorted darkly, rapidly grasping Bella's waist and spinning their positions so fast that the redhead was held flush against the wall before she could think of a snarky reply. She grunted as her back hit the wood and the male vampire's hands travelled seductively over the curve of her hips, ghosting over her freckled arms and tracing the outline of her collarbones that poked out from beneath her navy tank top. Damon's eyes voyaged across the female vampire’s sculptured body, focusing on each perfect part until his icy blue eyes met her deep green ones. Their heavy breath mingled between them, the mere proximity of their perfect bodies already getting them worked up like horny teenagers. He lifted a hand up to lean against the wall just beside her head, pressing their bodies impossibly closer. 

The dark haired vampire’s fingers trailed along Bella's jawline before it met her chin, his thumb caressing over her bottom lip suggestively. She drew a sharp breath, all thoughts completely drained from her head as Damon Salvatore engulfed her mind and she melted as if she were putty in his hands.

“What do you think you’re doing, Damon?” she finally breathed out, her eyes flickering involuntarily to his lips, then trailing slowly back up to his eyes. 

“What do _you_ think I’m doing, Anabella?” Damon countered, his signature smirk flashing across his face once again, that familiar glint lingering in his blue eyes. The two longing vampires drew their faces closer and closer together, so their lips barely brushed, and Bella brought her hand up to Damon’s jaw. They were so close, all she had to do lean forward… just an inch. 

But she couldn't. She wouldn't allow herself to.

With one swift brush of her hand, Bella pushed Damon cruelly to the side and flashed into the study once again, earning a loud, irritated groan from the vampire. 

“Ugh, _why_ do you have to ruin all the fun?” Damon moaned selfishly, strolling through the doorway into the study. He walked directly to the drinks stand, where Bella had situated, settling himself ridiculously close to her as he poured himself the same glass of alcohol. 

“Why do _you_ have to be such a slut?” Bella retorted, picking up her drink mindlessly, analysing the closeness of Damon’s face once again. He spotted the glass in Bella's hand. 

"That's my bourbon."

“Funny,” Bella said, shifting her vision to the crystal glass in her palm, noticing bright reflections dance around the room as the afternoon sun shone onto it through the window. She looked back up at Damon, “I don’t see your name on it.”

The older Salvatore brother snickered to himself, “Some things in this house don’t _need_ my name on it, angel. Like the human blood stash in the basement, that’s mine, too.” 

“I’ll put that on my checklist next, then.”

“Cute,” Backing away slightly, he pressed on, “So, back in Mystic Falls, are we? What a reunion. Just like old times.”

The redhead's mind flashed back to the first time she met Damon. _Mystic Falls, 1864_. Bella and Lexi had just arrived, oblivious to the town's massacre of almost their entire vampire population and survived an attack from a freshly-turned bloodthirsty Stefan Salvatore who mistook Lexi for a human. Lexi, of course, dominated him due to her age, and Stefan offered them both a place to stay at his home, where his love-struck, heartbroken older brother and also newly-turned vampire, Damon Salvatore, was awaiting.

"Maybe not _just_ like old times," Bella hinted, squinting her eyes at the dark haired vampire. He nodded knowingly, giving her a once-over before averting back to her eyes. 

“Maybe not,” he repeated with a dark optimism. 

The ginger rolled her eyes at his cockiness, putting on her best pleading voice as she took a few steps towards the Salvatore. “Damon, _please_. Don’t start this again.”

“Start _what_ , Bella? Huh? I have _literally_ no idea what you’re talking about.” he claimed, his tone thick with sarcasm.

“You know what. This... _never_ ends well.” Bella gestured at the space between the two.

“Again, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I’m serious, Damon. I can handle the flirting, the teasing. But don’t try anything. I know I’m just part of your games and I’m not gonna let you hurt me _again_.” Bella started strongly, but her head bowed, amber hair falling into her freckled face. She felt a brisk whip of air around her; a finger and thumb lifted her chin from below, and Damon forced her head up to face him. The short vampire looked up at her old flame through her long lashes, accidentally giving him her puppy eyes and Damon felt something strange shift and melt inside of him at the hidden innocence and hurt that practically beamed through her emerald eyes. 

“What if I told you I’m not playing games this time?” he whispered seductively, his fingers skimming fondly from her chin over her jaw and cheeks, travelling both hands over to ever-so-gently push the stray strands of red hair behind her ears as his icy eyes drank in every freckle, every crevice, every inch of her celestial face.

She _knew_ he was lying. Every bone in her body knew it. She knew he was lying the hundred times before that, and she knew he was lying now. She even knew he was lying in 1922, when he pitched a no strings attached friends-with-benefits situation - the lie was the ' _no strings attached_ ' part. As much as they hated to admit it (something you will catch neither of them doing anyway), they began to grow fond of each other. So instead of talking, they just _wouldn't_. They'd let their feelings out physically, whether that be ripping each other's heads off or their clothes. 

“I’d tell you to pinch me,” Bella whispered back lowly, her eyelids falling slightly as she leaned into Damon’s large hand against her cheek and he pulled her face forward just slightly. It angered her how much control he had, the power that he could strip from her with just the tips of his fingers against her skin. “Or just let me dream.”

With Bella's words lingering in the air, both vampires leaned in, connecting their lips at long last. Damon thread his fingers through her long, soft hair, deepening the kiss as he flashed them to the couch, pinning the female vampire down onto the leather and hovering over her. Bella looked up at him submissively, biting down harshly on her swollen lip and grabbing a fistful of Damon's shirt before wrenching him back down into the kiss.

"How long do you think Stefan will be gone?" Bella breathed out, breaking their heavy make-out session for a split second before going back in, turning Damon on his back so that she was straddling his lap instead. Her lips detached from his, ghosting over his jaw and peppering soaring kisses down his neck.

"No idea," Damon returned, his voice almost a growl as Bella forcefully ripped his shirt over his head and continued her trail of kisses down his perfectly sculpted chest.

"Then we better make this quick," she whispered. The dark haired vampire rid Bella of her tank top as well, feeling her breath quick against his neck as he bit harsh love bites across her collarbones that healed within seconds.

Seems like their heads will be staying intact for now.

* * *

After declining Damon's invitation for a drink at the Mystic Grill, some bar-restaurant in the town square that he guaranteed would be worth her time, Bella fixed her hair, her tank top _and_ another glass of bourbon before Stefan arrived back at the boarding house after his meeting with Elena.

"So, how was it?" the redhead asked once he had made it through the foyer. She was sitting comfortably on an armchair, sipping her bourbon as she stared thoughtfully into the burning fire.

"Terrible." Stefan began, a look of worry and distress painted across his face. "I-I told her that I was going to be distancing myself from... her."

Bella's face contorted with secondhand pain, trying her best to show a small smile. "How did she take it?"

"Not well. But... it's easier if she hates me for it," he reasoned dismally, "But that's not the worst of it right now. Damon threatened one of her friends, Bonnie Bennett. She's a witch."

Bella's eyes widened, the gears turning in her head at the mention of a Bennett witch. Clearing the lump that suddenly appeared in her throat, she asked, "A _Bennett_? What does Damon want with a Bennett witch?"

"I have no idea. The only connection I can think of is _Emily_ Bennett, Katherine's handmaid. Bonnie is a descendant of hers and she has a crystal that Damon is just dying to get his hands on. Katherine's crystal." Stefan spoke his train of thought out loud as he paced the floor of the Salvatore parlour.

Bella downed the rest of her drink, already preparing herself for what was most likely going to be a long night, before another confused question rolled off of her tongue. "Katherine's crystal? What the hell is he planning to do with that?"

"That's what we're going to find out." Stefan stated, clearly fed up with his older brother's scheming. The female vampire began thinking, trying to recall if Damon had ever mentioned anything about Katherine's crystal. Come to think of it, he was pretty closed off in all the years she'd known him when their conversations turned to the infamous Katherine Pierce. "Did Damon say where he was going when he left?"

"Uh, that bar place. The Mystic Grill or something, right?" Bella answered waveringly, raising an eyebrow at Stefan's inquiry.

"Then I guess we're going to the Grill."

* * *

Warmth engulfed the two as they entered the Mystic Grill, immediately scanning the room of chattering humans until Bella spotted a certain dark-haired, leather-wearing vampire alone at the bar with a large bottle of bourbon at his side.

"At the bar," Stefan hinted quietly, almost reading Bella's mind. She shook her head and scoffed at Damon's unconcealed alcoholism. Not that she was really one to be judging.

"Obviously."

The vampires on a mission made their way past the humans and towards the elevated bar, finally reaching their target and smoothly ambushing him from both sides. Bella propped herself up on a stool directly beside Damon, leaning over the bar to compel a drink from the human bartender.

"Gin, please." the redhead ordered. A small, sarcastic smile plastered over Damon's face, giving the female vampire a once over in her leather jacket and tank top that had been strewn across the floor of his study merely a few hours before.

"Classy," he divulged, taking a disinterested gulp of his bourbon. Stefan leaned in to his brother at an uncomfortably close proximity as the bartender brought Bella over her gin. She held her hand over the large glass bottle, using her powers of persuasion to get him to leave her the entire container.

"So, Stefan, you know, I've been thinkin'. I think we should start over, give this brother thing another chance." he began, pursuing the same childish derision that they had started this morning, "We used to do it _oh_ , so well once upon a time." The younger Salvatore mocked his brother's signature smouldering look.

"I don't, Damon. I can't trust you to be a nice guy. You- You kill everybody, and you're so mean. You're so mean, and..." Damon struggled to emulate his teenage brother's altruism. Obviously that showed a lot about him. Eventually he just gave up. "You're _really_ hard to imitate, and then I have to go to that lesser place."

"I'm sorry," Bella cut in, earning the attention from both Salvatore brothers, "Are you really _mocking_ each other?" she asked with an amused scoff, taking a sip of her gin.

"Yeah, you want me to _do_ you next, sugar?" the dark-haired vampire posed provocatively, winking at her as a clueless Stefan ordered himself a coffee. Bella stayed silent, an unimpressed gaze settling over her eyes when Damon nonchalantly shifted his attention back to his bourbon.

"So what's with the bottle? Finally drinking yourself into a vat of redundancy?" Bella pouted, her tone laced with sardonic worry. Damon rolled his icy blue eyes at her tease.

"I'm on edge. Crash diet, and I'm trying to keep a low profile."

The redhead scoffed and looked over at Stefan, raising her eyebrows in disbelief. " _Damon_ _Salvatore_ keeping a low profile? Has hell frozen over?" Her frenemy side-eyed her again.

"You should know, I hear you visit on weekends." 

"You know, you could always just leave, find a new town to turn into your own person gas 'n' sip," Stefan interrupted, earning his brother's attention. Honestly the thought of drinking from a human was kind of making Bella's mouth water.

"I'll manage," Damon retorted as Stefan thanked the bartender for his coffee. "You know, you don't have to keep an eye on me," he continued, shifting his eyes between the two vampires on either side of him, his gaze lingering on Bella finishing off her gin. "Especially not _you_ , Little Orphan Vampire. Too much of a distraction."

Bella blushed frustratedly at the humiliating hair reference, but she merely rolled her eyes, countering, "Oh, we're not here to keep an eye on you."

"Then why _are_ you here?"

With Damon's question lingering in the air, Stefan shrugged and casually snatched the neck of the bottle of bourbon sitting on the bar, "Why not?" he quipped, strolling over to the dartboard that hung on the wall in the corner of the bar.

Bella saw what game he was playing, and she realised that Damon was smart enough to figure it out, too, but he went along, trailing after Stefan like a reluctant puppy. Grabbing her own bottle of gin, she strutted over to the brothers and took it upon herself to write both Salvatores up on the chalkboard.

"Winner plays me," the red-haired vampire commanded casually, letting her cocky, competitive side come out on full display. She grabbed the darts from the shelf and held them out in the palm of her hand, watching Damon strut arrogantly up to her so that their faces were merely a few centimetres apart, and seized them straight from her hand.

"Doesn't matter who plays you, you're still gonna lose," Damon teased. Bella chuckled breathily, gazing up at her frenemy with that look she knows always gets to him.

"You'll regret that, Salvatore," she threatened lightly, playfully slapping Damon's face before lifting herself onto the pool table beside the dartboard and nursing the bottle of gin in her arms. The dark-haired vampire merely grinned, letting his head fall to the side at the contact. He faced his brother and handed him the darts.

"I can never tell if you two are being serious or not," Stefan said, throwing his first dart at the board. Bella and Damon exchanged a knowing but childish look, and the latter shook his head.

"Completely, one hundred percent serious, little brother," Damon answered, watching his younger sibling send his last dart, hitting a perfect score. Bella clapped loudly, cheering on her best friend as Damon scowled sourly, walking up to take the darts out of the board.

"Lucky shot."

"More like a carefully honed skill over many decades."

"You're beating me."

"Well, yeah, because I'm better than you," Stefan joked, earning a chuckle from Bella, who had managed to drink half of her bottle within the time he'd finished his first round.

"Someone get Pennywise the Laughing Clown outta here," he quipped, capturing the redhead's attention as she straightened up and frowned at the vampire's insult.

" _Hey_ ," she whimpered sweetly, her frown forming a pout and her eyebrows adorably furrowing, causing Damon's features to soften slightly, "You're mean."

"Sorry not sorry, cupcake."

"You know, it wouldn't hurt to just have a good time with your little brother and his best friend _without_ biting our heads off every five minutes," Bella pointed out, wiping the innocent look off of her face and taking a mighty swig of her gin. 

"Well, where's the fun in that?" he retorted sarcastically, glancing between the two vampires, "I'm onto you two. Reverse psychology. I mean, it's a little transparent, but I admire the effort."

"You prefer the brooding forehead?" Stefan asked rhetorically, staring Damon in the eyes as he furrowed his brows. Bella observed the two brothers curiously, trying to figure out the rest of Stefan's game plan of getting information out of the older Salvatore.

"I mean, if we're talking psychological tactics all we'd need is a little shock therapy for you, honey," she added weakly, trying to loosen the tension between the Salvatores. The two male vampires kept their gaze, ignoring her attempt at mediation.

"Seriously, what game do you think you're playing?"

"That's a funny question considering the fact that I have been asking _you_ that... for months," Stefan answered smartly, watching his brother silently admit defeat by breaking their intense eye contact, "It's frustrating, isn't it?"

"Touché."

* * *

With Damon distracted at the bar fetching another bottle of bourbon, Stefan turned to Bella, whispering extremely lowly beneath the loud chatter of the humans around them to ensure his brother couldn't hear them. "I'm gonna take Damon to the football field, try to get some information out of him about Katherine's crystal."

The redhead nodded in agreement, "Good idea. I'll wait around here, there are several untouched bottles of gin behind that bar that definitely have my name on it. Call me if you need anything, okay?"

Stefan nodded, parting ways with his friend to fetch his brother, whereas Bella retrieved her almost empty bottle of gin and her leather jacket to clumsily dump herself into one of the booths. She watched Damon reluctantly stroll out of the bar with his little brother, clutching the bourbon in his hand as his face held an unimpressed scowl.

Bella observed the room from her seat, suddenly overcome with boredom due to her lack of company. Noticing her bottle was empty, she flagged down one of the employees, compelling another round from him quickly. Once the young human brought her drink, she circled the rim of her glass, inspecting the buffet of delicious humans around her. The twenty-one year old vampire could practically hear the blood speeding around each and every one of their systems, and it was driving her crazy. She took a deep breath to calm herself, spotting a middle-aged man suspiciously turning into the women's bathroom after an obviously teenage girl. The redhead downed her gin angrily, shoving herself up from the booth and strutting her way towards the restrooms. 

After checking her surroundings, she swiftly entered the women's room, spotting the same man standing uncomfortably close to the short blonde girl, who had a terrified look in her eyes.

"Hey, _asshole_ , get away from her," Bella instructed sternly, a dangerous glint in her irate green eyes. The predator turned to face the vampire, a disgusted look on his face at the disruption of his crime.

"Mind your own business, _cow_ ," he spat, facing the innocent teenager again, placing an unwanted hand on her shoulder. In the blink of an eye, Bella had the man pinned harshly against a cubicle, knocking him unconscious as the girl screamed at the sudden movement. The redhead gently held her hand out to the teenager, who had shuffled into the closest corner to get away from the seemingly new threat.

"It's okay. You're okay. I'm not going to hurt you, I promise." the vampire whispered kindly. The blonde young girl returned a shaky hand with trust, warmth engulfing her palm as Bella soothingly stroked the back of her hand. Focusing her green eyes into the girl's blue ones, Bella compelled the traumatised teenager. "You won't remember any of this."

"I won't remember any of this." the girl repeated monotonously. 

"Walk out of here with a smile. You are a strong, beautiful young woman. Don't ever forget that." Bella smiled warmly, finishing her compulsion and dropping the girl's suddenly still hand.

"I am a strong, beautiful woman." she repeated again, her face painting on a genuine smile as she robotically walked directly out of the women's bathroom. Bella watched her leave, before turning her gaze to the revolting paedophile who was beginning to gain consciousness.

"What- what happened?" he groaned, disoriented, feeling the blood flowing from the back of his head from his collision with the stall. His eyes travelled up Bella's form with suspicion. "Who the hell _are_ you?"

"Your worst nightmare." she stated bluntly, flashing down to grab the man by the collar of his shirt and pull him up the wall of the cubicle. "Don't make a sound."

Bella's emerald green eyes grew darkened and bloodshot, grey veins hardened under her eyes and she flashed her pearly white fangs. The man's face trembled, but he couldn't make a sound per Bella's request as she violently sunk her teeth into the carotid artery on his chubby neck, sucking viciously until the colour drained from his face and he could barely breath.

The vampire stopped at just the right moment, pulling back from his neck but keeping her hands forcefully against his shoulders. With his blood dripping from her chin, Bella smiled sinfully seeing that her victim could barely keep his eyes open, and she slapped him relentlessly until he become more aware.

"Are- are you going to kill me?" he whimpered pathetically. Bella could feel his whole body shaking, the dread practically radiating off of him. She tutted, shaking her head slowly.

"No, I'm not gonna kill you. As much as I _want_ to, I can't be causing any suspicion. But," she began, her face going back to normal as she started her compulsion on the vulgar man, "You won't tell anybody _anything_ you've seen here today. And you will _certainly_ not try to prey on innocent girls, or _anyone_ for that matter, _ever again_. Do you understand?"

"I understand."

"Now, go."

Just as she watched the compelled human leave the toilet and she began wiping the thick blood from her chin, Bella felt her cellphone vibrate in the pocket of her leather jacket. With wet toilet paper in her hand, dabbing at her face, she spotted that it was Stefan calling and she instantly answered.

"What's up, Stef?" she asked, satisfied with the lack of blood on her face and flushing the paper down the toilet.

"It's- Are you in the restroom?" he asked distractedly, and Bella chuckled.

"Oh no, no! Well, _yeah_. Just... cleaning up some mess," she explained innocently, hearing her friend groan over the phone. She looked in the mirror and began fiddling with her hair.

"Bella- You know what, we don't have time for this right now. Damon is trying to get Katherine out of the tomb," Stefan revealed hurriedly. Bella froze at the disclosure, staring at herself in the mirror in disbelief, the mere sound of the infamous vampire's name erupting a dormant anger inside of her.

"What? You told me all of the vampires in Mystic Falls were burned in the church!" the redhead whisper-yelled, storming aggressively out of the bathroom and into the main area of the restaurant." _Including_ Katherine!"

"I thought she did! Turns out that Damon and Emily had some kind of deal where he would protect her lineage and she would protect Katherine," he explained. Bella continued her way out of the Mystic Grill and out onto dark street, her eyes adjusting to the sudden darkness.

"I can't believe after all this time... so, what? She's been desiccating in a secret tomb for the last century in a half?" Bella asked sarcastically.

"Pretty much," the worried vampire replied, "But listen, I need you to get to Fell's church as fast as possible, Bonnie's being possessed by Emily and Damon's disappeared-"

"On it, I'll make sure he doesn't hurt the girl. Meet you there," Bella promised, hanging up the phone and zipping it into her pocket. She looked around frantically for any witnesses, before flashing into the night.

* * *

"Shit! _Damon_?" Bella called out desperately, seeing Damon's body writhing around, impaled on a tree branch going right through his stomach. The dark-haired vampire whined, trying to push himself off of the tree but it was no use, and he panted as Bella rushed over to him out of the darkness. She reached up at him with worry in her eyes, grabbing his arms and sliding him off of the branch as gently as she could.

"Oh, that hurt." Damon grunted, letting himself fall to the ground with Bella's strong arms still wrapped protectively around his shoulders. Out of the trees, Stefan came speeding up behind them, kneeling down slightly to check on his brother.

"He- he's okay," Bella assured him hesitantly with Damon squirming, clutching the bloody hole in his abdomen, in her lap.

"Nope, _not_ okay, Bella. This is why I feed on people." Damon groaned again. All three vampires turned to the sound of scraping, seeing who Bella assumed was Bonnie Bennett trailing a large branch around, drawing something in the damp dirt.

"Stefan." the witch greeted monotonously, her dark eyes gleaming with danger at the younger Salvatore. 

"Hello, Emily," right, Emily. Not Bonnie. This witch stuff got a little confusing sometimes.

"Bella." the possessed witch's stare shot like wooden bullets into the red-haired vampire's skull.

Bella's gaze shifted from concern for Damon, to confusion at the witch's knowledge of her name. "What- how do you-?" she began questioning, but Emily held up her hand for her to stop.

"Spirits talk." she uttered, almost like a warning; both Salvatores' eyes flashed to Bella's terrified, guilty look, but saved the warranted interrogation behind the witch's meaning for later. "These people don't deserve this. They should never have to know such evil."

Stefan and Bella share a bewildered look. Was she talking about Katherine?

"What do you mean evil?" the brown-haired vampire pressed on, stepping forward slightly towards the witch.

Damon struggled to get himself onto his feet, clenching his injury firmly. "Emily, I swear to _god_ I'll make you regret this." he threatened weakly, almost managing to get up but Bella held him back, keeping him on the ground with her outstanding strength winning over his frail state.

"You're not doing _anything_ ," Bella growled intimidatingly, watching Damon's face contort with pain.

"I won't let you unleash them into this world!"

"Them? Them, Damon? Who the hell are _them_?" Bella grew angrier by the second, lifting herself up from the injured vampire's side with ease, leaving him to toil in his pain alone on the ground.

"What part of the story did you leave out, Damon?" Stefan asked, gazing disappointingly at his brother.

"What does it matter?" he groaned in response. His ignorance caused Bella to frustratedly rub her forehead. 

"It matters a whole lot if you're lying about what is in that tomb, asshole!" Bella yelled impatiently, earning an apologetic scowl from the older Salvatore to which she merely shook her head in disdain.

"Emily, tell me what you did." Stefan ordered.

"To save her, I had to save _them_."

"You saved _everyone_ in the church?"

"With one comes all."

Damon, finally gained enough strength to push a distracted Bella to the floor and grasp onto his brother. "I don't care about that. I just want Katherine." he defended poorly, still nursing his wound as Stefan tried gravely to ignore his traitorous older sibling.

Offended, Bella quickly got up from the ground, wiping the dirt from the back of her legs, watching an argument unfold between the Salvatore brothers. "I knew I shouldn't have believed a single word that comes out of your mouth." Stefan spat, grabbing Damon's jacket as if he was trying to shake the truth out of him. "This isn't about love, is it? This is about revenge."

"The two aren't mutually exclusive." Damon breathed, harshly trying to worm out of his brother's infuriated grasp. Bella felt her wrath creep up her throat, flashing beside her best friend at his defence.

"Damon, you can't do this!" she tried, hateful eyes burning holes into his skin. His hard stare shifted to Bella, anger growing in his voice just like her own.

"Why not?" he yelled viciously into her face, "They killed 27 people and they called it a war battle. They deserve whatever they get!"

"Vampires! 27 vampires!" Stefan and Bella yelled back, Stefan's grip on his jacket getting tighter with every word. "You can't just bring them back!"

"This town deserves this." Damon returned darkly. Bella turned to face the possessed witch, watching her mark some kind of emblem on the ground.

"You're blaming innocent people for something that happened 145 years ago."

"There is nothing innocent about these people, and don't think for a second it won't happen again." Damon's brash accusation caught Bella's attention as she watched him forcefully shove his brother, who fell back into her, "They already know too much, and they'll burn your little grand-witch right next to us when they find out. Trust me."

Panic began to settle in Bella's stomach, mixing with her anger and creating a concoction of emotions that she hadn't felt in a very, very long time. Damon's harsh words hit her like a truck, the extremely real possibility of humans hunting vampires again storming, _uninvited_ , into her mind. But she knew those desiccated vampires shouldn't be let out. It wasn't an option. She could tell Stefan was probably going through the same thought process, her hand tightened around his arm for some kind of comfort, and they shared a worried look.

"Things are different now," Emily stated, catching the attention of the three vampires.

Damon shook his head slowly, begging, "Don't do this."

"I can't free them. I _won't_." she told him sternly, raising her arms as she chanted a spell. Tall, harsh flames grew out from the ground like demonic plants, surrounding the witch in the shape of a pentagram, instinctively making the three vampires flinch away from the deathly blaze. Damon tried charging forward, but Bella caught him before he got to the fire, hearing his pleads as Emily removed her necklace and placed it in her hands. 

Damon's pleas grew weaker and more desperate, trying to fight against the hold the redhead had on his shoulders, but he wasn't strong enough. All he could do was stand there and beg, and all Bella could do was watch him in pain.

" _Bonnie_!" a girl screamed from the darkness, alarming Bella so that her grip on Damon slipped, just when the witch threw the necklace into the air and it shattered into a million pieces. The red-haired vampire shifted her vision from Emily to the voice, seeing Stefan hold back who she assumed was Elena Gilbert. The resemblance to Katherine was freaky but she couldn't dwell on that for now.

"No!" Damon wailed, watching scorching pieces of the crystal rain down on them with a look of anger that Bella had never seen from him in her life.

Before she could react, the spell was over, the light from the fires had simmered immediately and Damon let out an anguished cry as he attacked Bonnie, his eyes becoming bloodshot, sinking his fangs deeply into the witch's neck.

"Damon!" Bella shouted, flashing over an instant faster than Stefan, ripping the angry vampire away from the innocent teenager, keeping a tight hold on the lapels of his jacket so Stefan could help her. "What the _hell_ are you thinking!" she reprimanded, watching Damon's face return to normal with his teeth bared aggressively, keeping his eyes trained on the unconscious Bennett witch that had fallen to the floor in her own blood.

Damon struggled against Bella's strong grip, but she refused to let go, making sure he didn't have the chance to do it again. She turned her head, tearing away the dangerous stare she had on the vampire, to watch Stefan check Bonnie's heartbeat. "She's alive, but barely. I can save her."

" _Quickly_ , Stefan," Bella snapped, feeling Damon's strength slowly come back when his struggle against her clasp became more powerful. She knew she was stronger than him, but she didn't know if she'd be fast enough to stop him from attacking the little witch again, or even Elena, who had caught him in a disappointed, disgusted glare. "Stop fighting me, I'm _not_ letting go." the redhead whispered gratingly, locking eyes with Damon. His only showed vexation, but his struggle came to a halt.

She heard Bonnie struggling, groaning uncomfortably as she drank the blood oozing from Stefan's wrist. "Her neck, it's healing." the lookalike pointed out, and Bella could literally hear the skin melding together.

"Good," she whispered, more as a comfort to herself. The redhead sighed, looking up at Damon, who was still shaking with anger but adorned a sorrowful look on his face. When he caught the female vampire staring, he tugged away, ripping her hands from his jacket and stepping back, the concern melting into distrust at the sight of her. She watched him disappear into the shadows of the forest.

Bella, conflicted, turned to Stefan and Elena, who were helping a traumatised Bonnie off of the floor. Stefan caught her stare, noticing the worry for his brother in her eyes despite him attacking an innocent girl. With a sigh, he agreed to her silent ask, nodding reluctantly in the direction Damon headed, letting her know it was okay for her to check on him.

She couldn't help but worry. But the worry also came with frustration. As she trekked through the shrubbery and trees, Bella couldn't stop the scowl that emerged on her face at the spell Damon Salvatore had her under. She had just witnessed once again him proving himself to be the monster everybody thinks he is, that the only thing he cared about in the entire world other than himself was the vampire that manipulated him, used him, ruined his life; not his brother, and certainly not Bella.

After not very long, Bella found Damon slumped over on a fallen tree, his elbows resting on his knees, staring blankly out into the endless darkness of the forest. He sensed Bella's presence, but stayed still as a statue, eyes gleaming with tears but he let none fall to his cheeks. The red-haired vampire wrapped her leather jacket tighter around her body, folding her arms over her chest, desperately trying to think of something to say to her frenemy. But he filled the silence for her.

"Katherine never compelled me. I knew everything, every step of the way." Damon explained, his tone matching his deadpan expression. "Stefan may not have loved her, but I did. It was real for me. I felt nothing like it in my entire life."

 _I felt nothing like it in my entire life_. The words played in Bella's mind on a loop, constantly repeating in a mocking tone, ridiculing every single thought she'd ever had about the man she tried so hard not to love for so long. It was all for _nothing_. Stefan and Lexi were right all those years ago: he didn't love her, not the way she loved him. And despite it hurting, despite every piece of her heart breaking into tiny pieces, all it took was for her to hear it from Damon himself, she finally saw what her friends had seen long before her. Bella was nothing but a game for him. He never loved her.

"Is she worth it?" The question even surprised Bella herself as the pressing words rolled shakily off of her tongue, but she stuck with it, looking down at Damon with lost confidence in her eyes.

"Is she worth _what_?" he spat, finally locking eyes with the female before him. 

"Losing the people who love you the most for someone who doesn't love you at all."

Bella watched the statement sting Damon's face. She expected a comeback, a defence, an insult, anything back. But he stayed silent. The redhead sighed, looking down at the floor and back up at the broken vampire, waiting just one more second for him to reply, before eventually giving up. The leaves crunched beneath her boots as she took a step to walk away.

"I'll leave now." Damon's voice finally called out. It sounded broken. _Hurt_. Bella stopped in her tracks, wondering for a second if it was because of her words or the crystal. She looked over her shoulder to take one last glance at him.

"Goodbye, Damon."

* * *

Bella King stumbled through the grand front door of the Salvatore Boarding House, a fresh bottle of gin hanging loosely from the palm of her hand. A small smile was painted onto her face, despite her blood-stained chin and tears falling relentlessly from her green eyes. As quietly as she could, she slumped her leather jacket off, dashing it carelessly to the side, making her way to the parlour, where the large fire was still burning.

The heels of her boots clicked softly against the floorboards, stopping just as she reached the large couch, dropping herself onto it with anything but grace, nearly spilling her bottle of gin in the process. The redhead took an excessive swig of the bottle, almost drowning in the depressant, until a loud thud alerted her that came from upstairs. Setting the alcohol down and licking the blood barbarically from her chin, Bella flashed clumsily up the stairs to Stefan's bedroom. 

She stood in the doorway, seeing her best friend standing at the end of his bed, frustratedly running his hands over his face and through his hair, tears almost spilling from his eyes. He spotted Bella in the doorway, giving her a look of such sorrow that tore her already broken heart apart even more.

"M-Me and Elena are- we're _over_ ," he choked out weakly, noticing the small droplets already falling from Bella's green eyes. Trying to make light of their misery, he asked. "What about you?"

"Your brother's an ass," she replied vaguely with a sorrowful chuckle, losing eye contact with her friend, who delicately held out his arms for her. Bella rushed into him, wrapping her arms around his neck, soothingly rubbing his back and feeling his strong arms returning the favour as he finally let out a devastating sob.

And they stayed like that, _just for a little while_.


	2. The Turning Point

Bella was laying across a couch in the parlour, flicking the pages of one of the books she'd found in the Salvatore's extensive library with a glass of bourbon resting beside her. She sat in silence with Damon, who was staring inattentively out of the window, basking in the sunlight that melted into the room.

Neither vampire had exchanged a word, practically disregarding each other's presence. Damon was concealing his heartbreak over losing Katherine, and the last person in the world he wanted to talk about it with was the woman he was sleeping with; Bella, on the other hand, was still spinning the words he'd said to her last night around her head. The latter had pretty much admitted that Katherine was the only person he'd ever loved, and it _hurt_. As much as she knew he was just using her, playing her like a pawn to deal with his turmoil without actually addressing it, there was still that one tiny glimmer of hope, a shred of light that cowered in the back of Bella's mind that had the thought that maybe, as luck would have it, he just might love her back. But he didn't, his impetuous words strolled right into her head and relentlessly squashed any optimism she had. And now she didn't care.

Before her thoughts could spiral any more, Stefan, the mediator of tension himself, entered through the huge doorway to the foyer. "So, any idea of where you'll go?" he asked his brother casually. Bella acknowledged his presence, but kept her eyes trained on the words in her book.

"I don't know. London, maybe. See some friends," Damon replied, unmoved from his spot at the window. 

Bella furrowed her eyebrows, at this point she was just pretending to read as she listened to the conversation between the Salvatore brothers. She sighed, unable to help herself, "You don't _have_ any friends, Damon."

The dark-haired vampire turned away from the glass, facing the redhead, who kept her eyes on her book despite feeling the icy gaze he set upon her. "Oh, she speaks," Damon began, showing faux surprise at Bella's decision to accredit his existence. She looked up at him, finally tearing away from her book and sipping her bourbon with an unamused look on her face. "You know what, you're right, Lavagirl. I only have _you_ , my sworn frenemy, and my heroic little brother who hates my guts. So... where are we going?"

His question lingered in the air long enough for Bella to shoot a pleading glance at Stefan, but he'd already made up his mind. " _We_ are not going anywhere. _Bella_ and _I_ are going to live our lives as far away from _you_ as possible." the younger Salvatore stated strongly, his arms crossed over his chest. Bella watched Damon's face contort into a displeased expression of betrayal.

"But we're a _team_! The three musketeers! We could travel the world together," Damon convinced, an idea popping into his head, "We could try out for The Amazing Race."

"Been there, done that," Bella added, raising from her seat on the couch with her crystal glass in hand, making eye contact with Damon as she made her way to the decanter of bourbon on the opposite side. He furrowed his brows at her in confusion. "2002." she answered his silent question, earning an approving nod before she continued, "Seriously, where are you going, Damon? Because if me and Stefan aren't staying in this town then you certainly are not."

Just as the ginger finished her sentence, all three vampires were alerted by a soft ringing of the doorbell. Stefan set off to answer first, reaching the front door just as Damon and Bella decided to check it out, as well. Behind the door revealed a distressed-looking blonde woman adorned in police uniform, who didn't waste anytime before she politely demanded, "I'm here to see Damon."

"Uh, sure. Okay." he replied, a perplexed look etched onto his face as he turned to see Damon and Bella coming up just behind him. Damon, upon hearing his name, revealed himself to the woman, flashing her a small smile.

"Sheriff," he began, "What a surprise."

"Sorry to bother you, but we need to talk," the woman, who Bella now knew was the town's own Sheriff, requested apprehensively. The redhead could practically smell the anxiety rolling off of her. Then she began wondering why Damon would be so close with Mystic Fall's Sheriff that she would be inclined to make house-calls and demand his presence so desperately. At the thought, she eyed the vampire suspiciously.

"Come in," he invited with a sincere but concerned nod, letting the officer walk by him as he shut the door softly behind her.

The Sheriff scrutinised Bella once she was in the threshold of the Salvatore house, obviously not recognising her unfamiliar face. The vampire held out her hand confidently, figuring that she may as well play nice even if she wasn't going to be around for much longer anyway. "Anabella King," she introduced herself, feeling the blonde policewoman's stature relax through their handshake, "You can call me Bella."

"Elizabeth Forbes. You can call me Liz."

Once their hands parted, Damon stepped in, "Bella's a... _friend_ of mine and Stefan's. Long story, wouldn't want to _bore_ you." he made up, irritating Bella already at interrupting her pleasantries. Liz just nodded with a polite smile. Damon rushed her out of the house, and into the backyard so they could talk in private.

Bella and Stefan, however, sat on opposite couches in the parlour, a fresh bourbon in the redhead's hand, as they both focused their hearing onto the unusual pair outside.

" _Um, I hope you understand the secrecy. Stefan doesn't know about this yet and Bella... well, she'd rather keep out of it_ ," Damon explained, causing Bella to roll her eyes but she continued listening to the Sheriff's response.

" _Of course. Kids are too young to be brought into this, and no one should have to get involved if they don't want to_."

" _So, what do you need?_ "

" _There's been another attack - a female victim, her throat torn out, completely drained of blood._ " Bella and Stefan looked up at each other with wide eyes, Liz's revelation shuddering apprehension through their bodies. " _It fits the pattern._ "

"Was that you?" Bella mouthed to her friend, already knowing the answer but her concern still forced her to make sure. Stefan shook his head, knotting his brows together when he nodded his head back to her, silently returning the question. Bella slowly shook her head back before listening in on Damon and Liz's conversation again.

" _I-I'm sorry, I don't understand. I thought I already solved the problem..._ " he didn't dare reference to staking Lexi, knowing the two nosy vampires inside were eavesdropping on their conversation from inside.

" _I'm thinking she must have turned someone. Or multiple someones. I don't know_." Gears started turning in Bella's head as Liz began to reveal more information. Stefan noticed her eyebrows furrow in thought. " _The story for the town is another animal attack, but I'm not sure how long we can keep lying to them. The council's in an uproar. We thought we were past this_." the Sheriff concluded frustratedly. Bella remembered Stefan telling her about the council: a group of Mystic Falls' high-ranking civil servants whose main priority was protecting the town's oblivious population from vampires. They were the ones who rounded up the vampires in 1864, covering it up as civilian casualties in the Battle of Willow Creek, just before Lexi and Bella had arrived and met the freshly-turned Salvatore brothers.

" _So, uh, what do we do?_ " Damon questioned weakly, though the red-haired vampire inside knew for sure that he was already cooking up a plan in that pretty, devious head of his.

" _You're the only one who's ever taken on a vampire. We were hoping you could tell us_."

Bella's face contorted with confusion as she concentrated her vision on the ground, trying to make Liz's last statement make sense in her head. There was another vampire in town, that Damon had managed to kill, and neither of them thought to mention it. She looked up at Stefan, feeling his gaze burning holes into her head, and whispered, "Damon killed a vampire for the council?"

"Some... innocent girl he preyed on... wanted revenge for what he made her, I guess," the brown haired vampire lied straight through his teeth, covering up suspiciously for his brother, but his friend bought it, watching her sigh and shake her head, obviously believing that his fib wasn't something that could be far from the truth.

A while after, the two dubious vampires watched Damon and Liz come back in from the yard and walk side by side through the parlour. The Sheriff gave them a warm, parting smile. "Goodbye, Stefan," she addressed the teenager first, before turning her attention to the newcomer, "It was nice meeting you, Bella, if you ever need anything, my door is always open."

Bella waved slightly with a matching smile, "You, too. See you around, Sheriff."

She watched Damon escort the human out of the house, exchanging goodbyes, then shutting the door quietly behind her. Leaving his brother no time to breathe, Stefan flashed angrily over to Damon, violently pinning the older vampire to the door with a fistful of his shirt. Bella sipped her bourbon, insouciant, observing the brothers butting heads once again. Her first conclusion wouldn't have been Damon - he was an idiot but he wasn't completely stupid to just leave a dead body in the street for anyone to see, especially when he was trying to keep a low profile. But, she let Stefan accuse him, knowing there wasn't a bone in his body that trusted his older sibling no matter how much convincing she could do.

"What is wrong with you? You killed somebody?" the youngest vampire interrogated. Bella saw Damon shove his brother off of him, straightening out his shirt with annoyance.

"Get off of me. A, don't touch me." he warned casually, brushing past his brother back towards the parlour, where Bella had gotten up to pour herself yet another glass of bourbon. It wasn't like she could get alcohol poisoning. "B, if I had, I wouldn't have been so obvious about it. C, there's another vampire in town."

The red-haired vampire heard his voice draw closer to the room she was in just as she picked up the bottle of bourbon. "That's impossible." she heard Stefan counter, pouring the drink into her glass.

"Obviously _not_. Unless it was you, Ginger Spice. Leave any snacks lying around last night?" Damon accused sarcastically, looking out into the parlour to see Bella helping herself to his alcohol. She paused before lifting the glass to her lips.

" _Nope_ ," she replied casually, popping the 'p' in her word like a child, "I'm not a messy eater. Plus I was here with Stefan." If she was being honest, Bella was so upset last night that it could of, in fact, been her who drained the life out of the woman. But she kept optimistic that it wasn't. Even in her worst states she wouldn't leave anything for vampire-hunters like Liz to suspect their identities.

"Then who could it be?"

Damon merely sighed at his brother's question, "Ah, what do we care? We're leavin' anyway, right?"

The female vampire eyed her frenemy suspiciously, drinking her bourbon and casually making her way towards the two.

"No, I can't leave now, and you know that." Stefan said bitterly, and Bella saw the frustration in his eyes. She left her half-drunk bourbon on one of the end tables and brushed past Damon to comfort her friend.

"Any vampire dumb enough to leave a body out like that must be a newbie. It won't be that hard to track," Bella stated, "I'll take care of it. You should make sure Elena is safe."

Just as Stefan nodded, he looked up at Damon, who held a disgusted look on his face at the suggestion, "No, _I'll_ take care of it." he spat, glaring into Bella's green eyes, "I know this town like the back of my hand, so I certainly don't need your help."

"I wasn't asking for permission, Damon. I'll handle it, so that me and Stefan can finally leave this godforsaken town without you trailing along with us." Bella retorted, removing her hand from Stefan shoulder and taking a defensive stance in front of him. Her fists balled up beside her, and she raised an unapologetic brow to the opposing vampire.

Damon scoffed, but before he could come up with some narky remark, Stefan pleaded with his brother, "Can't you just work together on this? Bella is the strongest out of the th-"

"Let the adults handle this, Stefan," the dark-haired vampire interrupted, neither him nor Bella removing their flaming eyes from the other. The younger Salvatore just sighed, shaking his head at their childishness.

"Then act like it. You two are finding this vampire. Together. End of story. I'm going to check on Elena." he huffed, brushing gently past Bella to exit the house, leaving his brother and best friend to their pathetic staring contest.

Once he watched Stefan slam the door behind the ginger vampire, Damon ripped his gaze from her. Bella's eyes twinkled, her face forming a cocky smile. "Ha! I win!" she celebrated immaturely, sticking out her tongue at the other vampire. She didn't notice him Damon let himself smile for a split second, raking his eyes across her body as she picked up her leather jacket, not realising her black tank-top had ridden up slightly, giving him a sneak peek at the freckles that scattered her hips, the hips that his lips had graced thousands of times before.

"You always do," he said under his breath, shaking the sinful thoughts that began to cloud his head before making his way out of the Salvatore house.

* * *

Stefan watched as Elena Gilbert's hopeful smile shifted into concern as she edged closer to his position leaning against one of the tables outside of their high school. He offered her a pained smile, hating to have to give her bad news yet again, especially after telling her that he was leaving just the night before.

"Hi," he greeted, trying his best to put in at least a little enthusiasm into his voice, "We need to talk."

Elena nodded, a lump catching in her throat as the anxiety began to build up inside of her. Stefan calmly explained the situation, making the human teenager tense with fear, but she breathed, slowly calming herself down so she could ask questions that began eating away at her.

"So you have no idea who it could be?" she inquired calmly, sneaking a glance at her... boyfriend? _Ex_ -boyfriend? She wasn't really entirely sure of their status in that moment but it wasn't the time to be having that conversation with a bloodthirsty vampire who has no intent on keeping their identity a secret on the loose. Stefan shook his head.

"None. But it must be somebody new, because leaving a body like that, they're either soppy or they're trying to send a message." the vampire explained.

"And you're sure it's not Damon?" she asked, like it was an obvious accusation. He couldn't blame her, Elena trusted Damon as far as she could throw him, even less so after his attempt at murdering her best friend merely a day before. Then she thought about the mysterious red-haired vampire she didn't have the chance to be introduced to. 

"Well, I'm never sure about Damon, but he's been trying to keep a low profile lately so it doesn't make any sense to me."

Elena pondered again back to the night Emily possessed her best friend, remembering the unfamiliar face of the vampire she saw holding Damon back from attacking Bonnie again. "What about that girl at the old church? The redhead that held Damon back when you fed Bonnie your blood. I never got to meet her properly, is it possible she's the one?"

Stefan shook his head in disagreement, "That was Bella King, a friend of mine and Lexi's. Sorry I didn't get to introduce you, she was pretty... upset, that night. But, no, she wouldn't have done this, she's almost three hundred years old and she's learned to control her thirst without killing."

Elena let out a breath, nodding gratefully. If Stefan trusted this new vampire, so did she. "So what are you gonna do?" she questioned.

"Damon and Bella are tracking them right now." he revealed, silently praying that they were actually doing what he asked without ripping each other's throats out in the meantime. The younger Salvatore acted like he didn't notice, but he felt the tension between the two: it had grown thicker, a little more bitter, than when Bella had arrived and he realised that whatever conversation they'd had that caused his best friend to sob uncontrollably in his arms couldn't have gone very well. He turned his attention to the concerned human beside him, "Look, I promised you the truth, so I wanted to tell you. I want you to be careful."

The human nodded in agreement at his soft demands, keeping her eyes trained on his. "When I saw you I... thought you were coming to say goodbye." she let out lowly. 

Stefan sighed longingly, before replying. "Not yet."

* * *

"God this thing is so stupid!" Bella King exclaimed, defeated, letting out an irritated groan as she watched the device in her hand violently jolt back and forth between her and the man by her side, "Why won't it stop flickering between us?"

"Because, _Einstein_ ," Damon began, plucking the Gilbert device from her hand so she wouldn't literally smash the things to pieces out of frustration, and it obviously still spazzed out uncontrollably, " _We_ are vampires. Or have you forgotten?"

Bella scowl wiped the smug look off of his face, "So how are we going to find the vampire if it only recognises us, _smart-ass_?"

Damon lead them quickly through the town square, "By getting a human to do it." he said cryptically, edging closer to a blonde-haired girl that sat on one of the benches in the middle of town, texting somebody on her phone. Bella instantly recognised the girl to be the innocent teenager she'd saved from the predator in the Mystic Grill bathroom.

"Caroline Forbes," Damon greeted the teenager, and Bella was able to put a name to the face she'd rescued and compelled. The Sheriff's daughter.

"Damon," she replied flatly, recognising his voice and obviously wanting to have nothing to do with it.

"I need you to do something for me, Blondie," the dark-haired vampire demanded, causing Caroline to snap her head up to face the two adults standing before her. She held a look of caution and disgust at Damon, but she eyed Bella suspiciously.

"I've never seen you around here before," the blonde stated bluntly, standing up from her seat at the park bench. Bella offered her a warm smile, playing along with the compulsion she'd put the girl under.

"Yeah, I'm Bella. Bella King," she introduced herself, continuing her sentence before Damon could have a chance to interrupt her like he had done with the girl's mother, "We really need your help."

* * *

Almost an hour of bourbon and gin and insults later, Damon received a call from Caroline with the address. " _So, what do I do now?_ " Bella heard her ask impatiently over the phone.

"Just wait, we'll be there in a minute." the vampire replied, standing up from his stool and jerking his head towards the door, making his way out of the Mystic Grill. Bella copied his movements, still focusing on his phone call with Caroline, wary of anything he could potentially be hiding from her. All she heard was the teenager's loud groan before she replied.

" _Can you hurry? I have things to do_."

Damon didn't bother replying, he just flashed his way to her location, with Bella just a split second behind. He knew Caroline would be waiting, he explained to Bella that he'd tried being her boyfriend, but Elena and Stefan weren't having any of it, so he just decided to compel her into being his pretty human slave. Bella, of course, being the modern feminist she was, scoffed at his ignorance. He didn't fail to mention the fact that she'd done similar in the past, making her shut up and drink her gin dejectedly.

Damon and Bella appeared at the warehouse that Caroline had found the vampire in, before she could even put down the phone. "You can give me that." he said suddenly from behind the girl, sending a shiver down her spine as she gasped, turning around to face the vampire.

He stared her down, watching her sigh as she handed over the watch with a flare of attitude that Bella liked. "So why did you need me to do this?" Caroline looked between the vampires for an answer.

"We... _interfere_ with the signal." Bella replied. The blonde human seemed satisfied, offering the vampire a warm yet wary smile, turning her attention to Damon.

"Can I go now? This has blown, like, half of my day."

"Oh, I like her." The redhead said, and watched Damon ignore her comment and turn his head from scanning the warehouse to staring directly into Caroline's eyes. His face was inches away from the girl's as he compelled her. 

"You do that. Get in your car. Go home. Forget I asked you to do this."

Caroline perked up significantly, shrugging her shoulders bubbly, "Okay. Bye now." she said to the vampires, before walking away with a flirty smile at Damon.

"Bye."

"Bye, Caroline," Bella returned sweetly. She didn't know her very well, or at all for that matter, but there was something about the sassy blonde human that Bella liked, maybe it was her confidence or her constant unimpressed attitude with Damon, she didn't know. But she somewhat admired her. "Charming as always," she spat at Damon's rudeness, seeing him begin walking towards the entrance of the warehouse.

"You actually _like_ her?" Damon questioned with distaste. Bella shrugged casually.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna steal away your Barbie doll." she mocked, seeing him make his way over to the entrance of the warehouse. "Hey, where are you going? We don't have a plan."

"We don't need one. The guy's a newbie. There's two of us, and we're older. We have the advantage." Bella scowled at his statement for a second, crossing her arms over her chest. She didn't like this, not one bit. It was too easy. She could get in, kill the vampire, and get out in thirty seconds. There had to be a catch. "Bella, you're _literally_ three hundred years old, I think you can handle it." he reminded sourly, continuing to head over to the door. Just before he broke the lock on the handle, he ordered, "Wait here."

Without waiting for a response, Damon let himself inside, the creaking of the old, rusty door making Bella cringe internally. And then he was gone. She considered following him in, ultimately deciding it was probably best, especially if her hunch was right and there was something else going on, they needed someone on the outside for the element of surprise.

Listening carefully, Bella suddenly heard three excruciatingly loud gunshots come from inside the door. She looked around desperately for another entrance, obviously not wanting to walk directly into the line of fire. After coming up short of an entrance, the redhead walked back down the steps and around to the other side of the building to find another way in, all while hearing the tense conversation between the vampires inside. Luckily she only heard one unfamiliar voice.

" _I have tons of these wooden bullets, so... nothin' funky._ " the voice threatened casually.

Bella listened to Damon's painful pants as he most likely tried to rip the bullets out of his skin. " _You don't wanna do this. Trust me_." he warned back arrogantly with a groan.

Quickly breaking the lock and flashing silently inside, Bella spotted Damon writhing around on the cement floor, the same way he did after Emily had sent him into the tree branch, and a blonde man circling him with the gun loaded with deadly wooden mini-missiles in his hand. He lifted it at the sound of Damon's weak threat, pulling the trigger and unknowingly making Bella flinch ever-so slightly flinch at the sudden gunshot. The wounded vampire yelled out in pain, but the newborn just disciplined. "That's what you get."

"For _what_?" Damon snapped, asking the question that had also popped into Bella's head. Does he really have to piss off everyone that he meets? He must get tired of everyone wanting to kill him wherever he goes.

"You made me like this."

"I killed you." _Of course you did_ , Bella scoffed in her mind. "I didn't turn you." That begs the question, _who_ turned him? The redhead began thinking, slightly ignoring the conversation between the two vampires, trying to think of anything or anyone who would have it out for Damon. Come to think of it, it was a ridiculous question. Everyone who was anyone had a grudge against Damon Salvatore.

Bella finally tuned in again to the argument unfolding between Damon and the angry newborn. "-I have some questions." She caught the tail end of the vampire's statement.

"Me first. Who turned you?" Damon tried salvaging the upper hand of the conversation despite squirming on the floor trying to pick wooden bullets out of his flesh.

"How should I know?" The newborn yelled, "Last thing I remember is I'm trying to stake your brother and then you grabbed me. That's it."

Bella blood boiled protectively at his mention of Stefan. It was one thing shooting Damon down, but going after Stefan was a no go. "Until I wake up in the ground behind a used-car dealership on Highway Four. Somebody buried me." The blonde vampire keeled down tauntingly beside Damon as he spoke, his words becoming more maniacal the more he went on about his own death. 

Damon, of course, replied sarcastically, still wincing whilst fiddling with the bullets lodged into him. "It happens."

"You bit me. It had to be you." the newborn accused. _Not quite how it works, buddy, try again_ , Bella said internally, intently watching the scene, trying to think of when would be the best time for her to jump in. They just needed more information.

"You have to have vampire blood in your system when you die. I didn't do that. Some other vampire found you, gave you their blood."

"Who?"

"That's what I wanna know."

"Dude, it's not like the welcome wagon was waiting with a bundt cake and a handbook. It's been a learn as you go process." The vampire pointed out. _Yeah, just like you and every other fucking vampire_ , Bella thought. This one was really starting to grind her gears. He had a choice, he could have resisted the feed, let himself die - some of their species were not so lucky to have an option, like Damon and Bella. "You know, one minute, I'm a small-town on-the-rise news guy, and next thing I know, I can't get into my house because my foot won't go through the door."

"You have to be invited in." Damon explained exhaustively.

"I know. I live alone." the blonde haired newborn revealed pathetically, and Bella couldn't help herself as she let out a silent giggle at his expense. Damon, too, let out a weak chuckle before answering unnecessarily.

"Ah, that sucks."

"So now," Bella mentally groaned at his continuation; she couldn't handle one more second of this vampire sitting here and feeling sorry for himself. The redhead wondered if it would be worth it to just sneak up and grab his heart right from his rib cage if she could get him to stop talking. "I'm at the Ramada watchin' pay-per-view all day, eating everything in sight, including housekeeping. All I can think about is blood and killing people. I can't stop killing people. I keep killing. And I like it. I'm conflicted." he thought aloud.

"Welcome to the club," Damon retaliated, and Bella squinted her eyes in confusion at his response. "Wait a minute, cops only found one body."

"I left one. I was tired. But I've been hiding the rest of the bodies. They're right back there."

With a look of disgust, Bella turned her head in the same direction the newborn pointed Damon to, praying that he was exaggerating. He definitely was _not_. Dead humans piled on top of each other in a hidden corner of the warehouse opposite Bella's hiding place. Who would seriously be that stupid to just leave corpses rotting in an old building? The redhead concluded that she did not, at _all_ , like this new guy. "You're kidding," she heard Damon say under his breath at the sight of the drained humans, speaking pretty much what she was thinking.

"They're just pilin' up," the vampire pointed his gun towards the pile. He sat himself down on the concrete exasperatedly, elbows leaning against his knees. Bella was starting to get tired and irritable, wanting Damon to just hurry up and get some answers from the guy. "Why am I so overemotional? All I can think about is my ex-girlfriend. I wanna be with her and bite her and stuff." _Oh, no. No, no, no, I did not sign up for irksome newborn vampire counselling._

"Well, you probably love her. Anything you felt before will be magnified now." Damon explained somewhat patiently. Bella involuntarily flashed back to when she transitioned. The unbearable pain, everything was too bright and too loud, she could feel everything and nothing all at the same time. It was something she'd never experienced before in her life and sometimes it still haunted her to this day. Unfortunately for him, it didn't make her sympathise with the newborn at all; she was still planning on ripping his throat out the first chance she got. "You're gonna have to learn to control that."

"What about walkin' in the sun? I'm a morning person. You can walk in the sun, which, by the way, is pretty cool." Bella instinctively twisted the daylight ring around her finger. "The council'd never suspect you. That's not in the journals."

The hidden vampire furrowed her eyebrows. "The journals?" Damon questioned, and Bella thanked whatever higher power answered her prayers because they were finally going to get some information out of this pathetic excuse of a vampire.

"Yeah, the Founding Fathers, they passed down journals to their kids. Come on, man, you gotta tell me. How can you walk around in the sun?" The newborn pressed on, frustrating Damon and the redhead in the shadows.

"Who turned you?"

"How do you walk in the sun?"

"Who turned you?"

Bella felt the vampire's patience fleeting as he spoke, "You know, I've been really nice so far," sure, deathly wooden bullets into the flesh of a vampire could be somehow deemed as a kindness, "But I _will_ kill you." he threatened harshly, standing up from the ground and raising the gun up at Damon, who mimicked the newborn and stood confidently on his feet, clearly gaining some of his strength back whilst the other vampire whined on and on and threw himself a pity party.

"Then you'll never know. You're not answering my question."

"You first."

"Seems we're a bit of an impasse then, doesn't it?" Damon asked rhetorically, his usual cocky arrogance coming out to play once he knew he had the upper hand.

"I have things to do. People to kill." the newborn explained casually, and Bella could feel the tension rising in his voice. She knew he wasn't going to give anything up, if he knew anything at all, and prepared herself to attack. "Guess I'll be needing a little head start."

As the villainous words left his mouth, three more bullets went off and Bella flashed rapidly towards the newborn at the same time, appearing directly in front of him. She lifted a fist a sucker punched him in the nose and watched him stumble over. He quickly fiddled with his gun again as Bella followed him, kicking him harshly in the leg, causing him to cry out in pain. He let a few bullets out, managing to catch her side and her thigh and she startled him so much that he fled, flashing out of the warehouse and to god knows where.

"Ugh," Bella groaned, feeling the blood oozing out of her body and ripping the two bullets out of her flesh with a cry, more from irritation rather than pain. "You good?"

Practically disgusted with her ridiculous question, Damon whimpered pathetically, "God, you couldn't have jumped in a little faster?"

Bella shrugged, kneeling down beside the seething vampire to begin helping take the fresh wooden bullets out of his blood-soaked skin and clothes. "He wasn't going to kill you, otherwise he would have just gotten it over and done with." she winced at the cry her frenemy let out when she excruciatingly pulled the first bullet out of him.

"Plus, it was kinda fun watching karma take care of you for a little while."

* * *

"Logan Fell's a vampire," Damon angrily explained to Stefan over the phone, shrugging off his bloody shirt as Bella entered his room in her own fresh tank-top and jeans on and a bag of A positive in her hand to regain a bit of strength. "And when I find him again, I am gonna destroy him limb by limb."

 _You can say that again_ , Bella scorned internally. She listened in to Stefan's reply as she sucked the human blood out of the bag with satisfaction.

" _What happened? You okay? Where's Bella?_ " he questioned worriedly.

"No. I'm not okay. I was ambushed. I was shot." The redhead watched him aggressively shove the sleeves of his gory shirt off and onto the floor. She grimaced, cringing at the sight of blood splattered all over his chest. The angry vampire glared dangerously at Bella through the mirror. "Little Orphan Vampire was of almost _no_ help."

"We needed information!" she defended, throwing her arms up in the air. Damon just dismissed her rebuttal, continuing over the phone to his younger brother.

"Well, now I'm vengeful. Just gotta find him." Bella noticed the familiar murderous glint in the other vampire's eyes, and she knew that he wasn't going to stop until he knew that this Logan Fell character was dead. For good, this time. 

" _Well, there's no need. He's here at the school_." Stefan revealed solemnly; the redhead furrowed her brows and scoffed.

"You're kidding me. Why the hell is he there?" Damon asked the question that was on everyone's minds as he pulled a new shirt out of his closet. Bella finished her blood bag, walking over from her seat to throw it in the trash, then she waited by the doorway for Damon to hurry up so that they could meet Stefan at the school.

" _He's workin' the crowd_." the younger Salvatore replied. The worry in her best friend's voice broke Bella's heart a little bit, all he wanted was to make sure his girlfriend was safe but there's always something making their leaving plans a little more damn complicated.

"Well, we'll be right there."

* * *

Stefan told them to meet him at Elm Street, exactly where Logan Fell had been, braking so domestically at a stop sign. The youngest flashed up to the car, ripping open the car door and dragging the newborn out of his seat. When he bounced back, Damon appeared, shooting him down with the gun loaded with wooden bullets that he grabbed before he and Bella left the Salvatore house.

"Payback's a bitch, isn't it?" Damon quipped at the defeated vampire who was writhing against the road. "Get her out of here." his head turned to the two vampires behind him.

The redhead vampire spotted Caroline Forbes in the driver's seat and the anger inside she held for Logan erupted even more. She heard Sheriff Forbes' distressed voice yelling over the phone, and she flashed over to the car to answer as Stefan went to carry Caroline out of the car.

"Sheriff, it's- it's Bella," the female vampire quickly replied, putting on her most anxious voice to make the situation seem more dire.

"Bella? Where's Caroline?" Liz demanded.

"She's okay. Damon and I stopped the vampire before he could hurt her. W-we're Elm Street." Bella informed her hurriedly, then hung up and put Logan's phone back onto the driver's seat. Stefan flashed away with the unconscious human teenager, and the redhead joined Damon at the trunk of the car, a sickening smile forming on her face at the sight of the irritating newborn squirming around on the ground.

Spotting the tire iron in Damon's hand and figuring out his tactic, Bella sunk down next to Logan on the floor. "You know, you're _really_ pissing me off today, Fell." she hissed, "But you're new. We'll give you the benefit of the doubt. As much as I want to rip your heart out of your chest, so..." she kept her eyes on him writhing around, nursing his bullet wounds as he stared up at the vampire, trying not to look at threatened as he felt.

Damon finished her sentence, admiring the makeshift weapon in his hand. "So, we're gonna try this one more time." he played with iron, slowly swinging it to show the newborn what he's in for if he doesn't answer his question correctly. "Who turned you?"

"I told you I don't know." Logan groaned. Bella scoffed beside him, treading her boot over his hand as she moved her position next to Damon, earning another wince from the vampire.

"Liar!" she accused frustratedly.

"This tire iron here could take your head clean off." Damon informed, lifting it behind him to swing at the newborn, "Is that your final answer?"

"How can you side with them?" Logan asked, a look of disgust passing over his face as he glanced between his attackers.

"I don't side with anyone. You pissed me off. I want you dead."

"And quite frankly, you're really goddamn annoying." Bella added with an unamused scowl.

Damon nodded his head in agreement, continuing his interrogation of the vampire, "Who turned you?"

"I don't know!"

"Oh, well. You're screwed. Go ahead, Damon, he's of no use to us." Bella instructed half-heartedly, and on her command Damon lifted the tire iron at a higher angle and went to swing at Logan. The newborn raised his hand, desperately yelling for him to wait and stared spouting some bullshit to keep himself alive.

"Wait, wait! I do know!" he shouted.

"You're lying!"

"You think you're the only one that wants to get in that tomb underneath the old church?" Logan revealed, kneeling in front of Damon. Both vampires eyes widened, but Damon lowered his weapon.

"If you are lying to me, I will end you." he threatened dangerously.

"He's lying Damon, he has to be!" Bella tried convincing him desperately, trying to grab the weapon out of his hands to just finish the job herself, but he quickly snatched it and pushed her away, the unexpected contact causing her to trip and fall onto the floor. Jesus Christ.

"I am not lying. There's another way to break the spell. We can help you."

"Who's we?" Bella spat as she lifted herself up from the ground, taking a stance beside Damon. "Damon, don't listen to him, he's lying to save his own ass!"

Both male vampires ignored the redhead, "Meet me at the old church." Police sirens alerted the three, distracting Bella from Damon and Logan as she realised the arrival of humans. She couldn't kill him now without raising suspicion, but before she could think, she was being thrown at the full force of a newborn vampire towards Logan's car beside Damon. It didn't affect her at all, she was merely surprised, but as the Sheriff neared closer, Bella groaned just as Damon had with a believable grimace over her face.

"Where is she?" Liz questioned, Bella lifted herself up with the aid of the car.

"She-she's fine, Liz, Stefan's taken her home." the female vampire breathed, hearing Damon's fake pants from her side.

"I'm sorry, Sheriff. I just wasn't strong enough." he lied straight through his teeth, nursing his arm as if he'd been injured. The Sheriff deemed it believable, however, a concerned look covering her face at the two, turning away to get back to her car.

* * *

"I thought you were done with this ridiculously _stupid_ pursuit of getting Katherine back," Bella questioned angrily, emerging from the darkness of the trees as Damon hung up his phone on Sheriff Forbes. At least Logan Fell was dead. The dark-haired vampire turned on his heel at the sound of her voice.

He flashed over to her, their faces merely inches apart, but she didn't move, unperturbed by his abruptness. Their gaze settled onto each other. Her eyes twinkled brightly in the moonlight, reflections bouncing off of her pale skin in the most perfect way. She saw the pain in his eyes, it was hidden well but _she_ could see it floating around behind his icy blue irises. His hands lifted to stroke back a stray hair from her face, then letting them rest on her neck, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs; eyes scanning over her freckles. She gave him an innocent smile.

"Sorry, Bella," he whispered softly, and before the redhead could react, her eyes closed and a loud crack echoed through the forest as he snapped her neck casually. Unfazed by his actions, Damon let Bella's body fall limp in his arms, carrying her over to his car and laying her gently in the front passenger seat. He rummaged around her pockets, searching for leverage.

Finally, Damon felt the inside pocket of her leather jacket, pulling out an old creased picture. He knew she always had it on her. The vampire observed an image of two young girls, one with flowing red hair and green eyes, holding the hand of a shorter child with blonde hair that stopped short of her shoulders. Behind the children was a stoic, muscular man dressed in formal attire, his arms wrapped lovingly around the waist of his fiery haired wife. Damon held a vindictive smile on his face as he read the elegant, cursive inscription underneath. 

_Henry and Agatha King with their beautiful daughters, Anabella and Daisy. 1723._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so ! learning a little bit more about bella which is fun, hope whoever's reading this is enjoying i'm having so much fun writing this <3


	3. Bloodlines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoy ! be sure to leave comments & such if you do, i really appreciate constructive criticism :)

Bella woke up with an aggressive start, gasping deeply as she leaned forward in her seat, the seatbelt over her chest restraining her. After a few seconds, she gained her breath back, thankfully feeling the life flow back into her body.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty," a familiar voice startled her, and she snapped her head to the side to see none other than Damon Salvatore casually sat back in the driver's seat.

"Damon? What-" her expression then contorted from confused to completely vexed, realising that smug grin on his face and the ache she had felt in her neck, "You snapped my neck!" she accused angrily.

"Hey, hey, hush," he shushed nonchalantly, lifting his finger to his lips then towards the back of the car. Bella's eyes widened when they followed his direction, spotting an unconscious Katherine Pierce lookalike laying with her bleeding head against the glass of the car window. "We have company."

Bella's face could only hold a look of utter disgust, keeping her tone at a low but irate whisper, "You brought Stefan's _girlfriend_?"

"Well, I'm not too sure about their, uh, relationship status right now," Damon quipped, glancing back at Elena and then at Bella.

"Which is none of your business anyway! What happened to her head?"

"Her car decided to do a little free-styling on her way home." he explained, the redhead took a worried look at her best friend's love, "Don't worry, she's fine. Well, actually I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that she found out about Katherine."

"Oh, god," was all Bella could breathe out. She knew Stefan's forbidden romance with the human was going to bite him in the ass one of these days. "Damon, where are we?"

He ignored her irritated questioning, hearing Elena stir herself awake in the back of the car. "Morning," the human flinched slightly at Damon's greeting, she glanced between him and the unfamiliar redhead in the front seat, who couldn't keep a hard, unimpressed stare off of the older Salvatore. Slowly she tore her eyes from him and gave the lookalike an apologetic smile.

"Elena, hey, how're you feeling?" Bella softly asked, trying to keep her bubbling anger at Damon to a minimum. The vampire and the human had never met before, and she didn't want her to be afraid, she knew from Stefan that Elena had no trust in Damon so she hoped she could be an anchor for that. She was Stefan's best friend, after all, she'd do nothing to put the love of his life in harm's way.

"I-I'm fine. You're, um, Bella, right? Stefan's friend?" the teenager asked, nursing her neck in her hand. Bella nodded, brows furrowed with concern.

"Yeah, Lexi, Stefan and I were like the Three's Company of the 1900's," Bella joked, watching the reference go over Elena's head. 

"You were friends with Lex-" she began, but Damon froze, immediately interrupting the girl before she could say too much about Lexi or her bizarre disappearance.

"So, there's no broken bones. I checked. You're welcome." he changed the subject, earning a suspicious look from both females. Bella ignored it, catching the view of the valleys and forests that surrounded the strange road they were driving down.

"Damon... where are we?" the redhead asked carefully, just about ready to explode from his abrasive ignorance.

"Georgia."

"Georgia? What? No, no, no, we're not," Elena began panicking, holding her head most likely from the pain of her car crash; Bella turned around in her seat, a warm, reassuring smile on her face to try and calm her down.

"He's lying, we're not in Georgia, Elena," she soothed, then snapped her head back to Damon with true fire in her eyes, "Seriously, Damon, _where_ are we?"

"Seriously, we're- we're in Georgia." he repeated, offering her a tight, sarcastic smile. Bella grit her teeth at his arrogance, but Elena continued to freak out.

"My car," she came to a realisation, remembering the moments before she had crashed her car on her way home from the Salvatore house, "There was a man. I hit a man. But then he got up and - who was that?"

"That's what I would like to know."

"Where's my phone?" Elena asked worriedly, checking herself for her device after noticing it's disappearance. Bella stiffened, feeling around her own pockets in hopes of her own phone magically appearing out of nowhere. She grit her teeth at Damon, who kept his eyes on the road without a care in the world.

"And _mine_."

"Okay, we really need to go back. Nobody knows where I am. Pull over," demands tumbled from the anxious human.

"Damon," Bella piped in, venom lacing her tone, "Stop this goddamn car right now or so help me god, I will destroy so badly this time that you'll never drive it again."

The dark-haired vampire glared at his frenemy, his eye twitching slightly as her words hit him where it almost hurt and he remembered the last time she'd threatened his car. It was so bad, it took two workshops and about eight months to get it even half decent, and although he had eternity to repair it, he still obeyed Bella's threatening demand, figuring it was less hassle to just do as she pleased for now instead of suffering the consequences later. Not that any of it mattered, as long as he had leverage, she'd be at his bidding. And he did.

"You two were _so_ much more fun when you were asleep." he groaned, pulling the car to a stop on the side of the road. Bella let herself out of the car, lifting the seat forward so that a thankful Elena could hoist herself out with a pained sigh. The female vampire sensed her discomfort, placing a gentle, soothing hand on her back to help her keep her head up. 

"I'm fine, thank you," Smiling, the human reassured her, and Bella let her have some space, switching her attention to the conceited older Salvatore brother with a scowl of pure exasperation across her face. She flashed over to his side of the car, merely inches from his face; he raised his eyebrow, unimpressed by her attempt at being threatening. Not because it wasn't scary, she was absolutely terrifying, but he'd seen it so many times before it was almost predictable.

"We _have_ to go back." Bella demanded, not bothering to pose it as a question. Her green eyes gave him a hard stare, but Damon just shrugged his shoulders casually and put on a carefree smile.

"Oh, come on. Look, we've already come this far," he persuaded, trying to look back at Elena for back up but she was completely with her new red-haired vampire friend on this one.

"Why are you doing this? I can't be in Georgia. I wrecked my car. I-I have to go home. This is _kidnapping_ ," Elena rambled, yet her voice was strong as she gave the dark-haired vampire a harsh glare that resembled Bella's own.

"That's a little melodramatic, don't you think?" he turned his head back to the fiery redhead.

"You're not funny, _Salvatore_. You're gonna take me and Elena home-"

"Oh, I don't think you're on to be making demands right now, _King_."

"And why is that?" Bella stood her ground, watching Damon reach into his pocket and pull out a piece of paper. He slowly unfolded it, revealing the image to the vampire as her eyes widened. "Give that back." she demanded, thrusting her hand out but Damon flashed away from her beside Elena. "Damon, I swear to god! Give that _back_!"

"Or what?" he held the photograph up so she could see, bending it slightly at the crease and watching the tiniest tear emerge.

Bella flinched, eyes wide with fear as she yelled, "Stop! _Stop_ , Damon!"

"You can have it when we get back to Mystic Falls. _If_ you behave yourself."

Satisfied with his leverage, Damon shoved the picture into his pocket, turning to Elena, who had watched the two vampires argue. "You can't do this. I'm _not_ going to Georgia." she stated harshly, looking over at Bella for backup but she just shook her head in defeat.

"Well, you're _in_ Georgia." he retorted, "Without your magic little necklace I might add. I can very easily make you... agreeable."

"What are you trying to prove?" Elena questioned. Suddenly, the ringing of a phone could be heard and the source was obviously coming from Damon's pocket. He sighed as the human and the other vampire eyed him suspiciously. "That's my phone."

He sighed quietly, reaching to grab the phone from his pocket and read the caller. "Mm, it's your boyfriend," Damon held the phone out to Elena, who turned her head away. "I'll take it."

"No, Damon, let me-" Bella tried, but he'd already answered the phone.

"Elena's phone."

" _Where is she? Why do you have her phone? Is she okay?_ " Stefan interrogated hurriedly. Bella rushed over to Damon, holding her hand out to take the phone from Damon but he just swatted her away like she was an annoying child as he teased his younger brother.

"Elena? She's right here. And, yes, she's _fine_."

" _Where are you? Let me speak to her._ "

"He wants to talk to you." Damon held the phone out to Elena again, but she shook her head, a look of betrayal etching over her face. "Yeah, I don't- I don't think she wants to talk to you right now."

" _Damon, I swear to god if you touch her-_ " Stefan began to threaten, but Bella had had enough. He needed to know that his girlfriend was okay, or he'd work himself up and potentially do something stupid. The female vampire quickly snatched the phone from Damon, walking away from the two as she held it to her ear

"Stefan? Stefan, it's Bella."

" _Bella? What are you- what are you doing with Damon?_ " he asked, confused. Bella just sighed irritably.

"The asshole snapped my neck and took me with him. Lord knows why," she explained with a huff, knowing the the asshole in question was absolutely listening to their conversation. "Don't worry, okay? I'm not going to let him hurt her."

" _Please, Bella, just tell me where you are. She doesn't have vervain!_ " Stefan begged to his friend. She turned around to Damon, who was watching her intently with her photograph casually in his hand, ready to make another tear. No doubt worse if she spilled their whereabouts.

"I know. But I'm sorry, Stefan," she apologised, scorning at Damon disappointingly, "I can't. Just trust me. I'll keep Elena safe." Bella shook her head slowly, not making eye contact with Damon as she stomped back to the car. She handed back Elena's phone to him, giving the human a small look of regret.

"Look, no one knows where I am. Can we please just go back?" she begged again, moving to face Damon, who was standing in front of the car. Bella leaned exasperatedly against the hood, keeping her mouth shut for once.

"We're almost there."

"Where is there?!"

"A little place right outside of Atlanta. Oh, come on, Elena, you don't wanna go back right now. Do you?" Bella kept her eyes on Damon, making sure he wasn't going to try to take advantage of the human's lack of vervain, as he made his way towards them, putting on his nicest voice. She saw Elena's face soften slightly, Damon's persuasion meddling with her instincts. "What's the rush? Time out. Trust me, your problems are still going to be there when you get home." he promised, "Look, step away from your life for five minutes," Elena gave him an unsure look, and he tilted his head to Bella, who's face was screwed up with annoyance and her arms crossed over her chest. "Five minutes."

The human sighed, looking between the two vampires accompanying her. Despite the lie that Stefan had kept from her, Elena knew that she could trust him, that he would never ever put her in harm's way, so if he deemed Bella trustworthy, then so did she. She saw the way the redhead stood up to Damon, she was strong and tough; there was just something about her that made her feel safe despite being kidnapped by her boyfriend's tactless, deluded, homicidal older brother. But she had to make sure for herself.

"Am I going to be safe with you?" Elena questioned them, and without hesitation both vampires replied in unison to her worrisome interrogation. Though the questions _were_ mostly aimed at Damon.

"Yes."

"Will you promise not to do that mind control thing with me?"

"Yes."

"Get in the car. Come on." he demanded, making his way to the driver's side, leaving the female vampire and the human to exchange a knowing yet frustrated look.

"Can I trust him?" she asked Bella lowly, who shook her head.

"Can anyone?"

* * *

"So where's my car?" Elena asked after a while of frustrated silence. The human had taken her original place in the backseat of the Chevy, with Bella in the front passenger seat and Damon, of course, in the driver's seat, tapping his hands incessantly against the steering wheel. The noise pounded in the red-haired vampire's skull, and she side-eyed the unaware male next to her. Impatiently, she shot her hand over to the steering wheel, clasping her fingers over his to get him to stop his from drumming. Seeing the mischievous glance he threw to her, she folded her arms over her chest and slumped back in her seat. Elena observed the two curiously, waiting for Damon to answer.

"I pulled it off on the side of the road. I don't think anyone will bother it," Damon replied.

"What about that man in the road?" she continued, trying to wrap her head around what had actually happened the night before, "Was he a..?"

"Well, if you hit him with your car and he got back up as if nothing happened... yeah," Bella answered. She leaned her elbow against the car door with her head in her hand, hair falling down her shoulder in a fiery cascade. 

"Did you know him?" Elena directed her question to Damon.

"If I've never met him, I wouldn't know him. I mean, it's not like we all hang out together at the vamp bar and grill," he jested sarcastically, eyeing Bella, who kept her attention at the quickly passing town around them. She then flopped her head to look at Damon with an amused, almost nostalgic look across her face.

"There was that one bar in '42, remember? Most vampires I've ever seen in one place," Bella reminisced, a small smile spreading across her lips as she gave Damon a once over.

He returned her sentimental look, "Ah, yes. New Orleans knew how to party." The two vampires chuckled suggestively, leaving Elena obviously confused.

"So... how long have you two known each other exactly?" she asked curiously.

"Uh, hundred years or so," Bella responded casually, "Not a _second_ of it pleasant."

"Oh, come on, it's not been all bad," said Damon, flashing the female vampire a charming smile. She just rolled her eyes, shaking her head slowly as she felt the car come to an abrupt stop, but the twinkle in her green irises and the small side grin she wore said everything.

"Where are we? You brought me to a bar?" Elena's words were less of a query and more of a scoff, unimpressed grouchiness leaking into her tone. Bella stayed silent, slamming the door of the car after Elena got out; honestly, she was just happy she could get a drink. "Guys, I'm not old enough. They're not gonna let me in." she stated as if it were obvious. But Damon wasn't having it, giving her a snide glance as he replied.

"Sure they will."

The redhead had already caught her eye on a top-shelf bottle of gin as soon as they'd entered the rustic bar, gin that she'd definitely be making her way through whilst Damon was doing whatever he needed to do here. Which was completely unknown to her, if she thought about it. But she didn't bother asking questions, whatever it was she didn't care, all she cared about was keeping Elena safe. And that bottle of gin. She was good at multitasking.

Damon caught the attention of a tall, dark-skinned bartender, whose eyes widened with surprise at his entrance. "No. No, it can't be. _Damon_." she sighed, dramatically lifting herself up and over the counter-top, strutting over to the vampire himself, "My honey pie." And without another word, she grasped his face and pulled him to her lips. Bella blinked in disbelief, then contorting her face into disgust. She shared a glance with Elena, who was wearing the same surprised expression, but the redhead shook off the seething jealousy that began to weigh down on her shoulders, rolling her eyes and folding her arms carelessly, finding herself a seat at the bar for an extremely needed drink. A strong one at that.

After the rather _unpleasant_ pleasantries, Elena and Damon joined Bella at the bar, the human sitting on her left and the other vampire on her right. The woman, who she'd learned was Bree, owner of the bar, began pouring out shots in celebration of Damon's arrival. _Lovely of her to boost his ego even more_.

"Listen up everybody! Here's to the man that broke my heart, crushed my soul, destroyed my life and ruined any and all chances of happiness!" she toasted, pouring each shot as she listed all the ways that Damon Salvatore had torn her down. She placed three shots down in front of the newcomers, "Drink up!"

Reluctantly, Bella joined Bree and Damon in chucking back their shots. She noticed Elena hesitate, giving her a considerate smile and a wink as she downed the human's shot as well before Bree could notice. Pouring them another shot, she began questioning the two women.

"So, how'd he rope you in?" she asked Bella, who shook her head, looking Damon up and down in disgust, then back at Bree.

" _Me? Roped?_ I don't think so," the redhead quipped, seeing Damon chuckle out of the corner of her eye and she kicked him harshly in the leg, "And she's dating his brother-" Bella began explaining as she turned to Elena, but Bree quickly interrupted with a smile.

"Honey, if you're not roped, you're whipped. Either way, just enjoy the ride." she advised, and Bella took another shot in response, accompanied with raised eyebrows and a curt nod. Elena steered the next conversation.

"So, how did you two meet?" the human asked casually.

Bree laughed. "College." Elena looked over at Damon in disbelief.

" _You_ went to college?"

"I've been on a college campus, _yes_." he replied, following Bella in taking another shot, letting Bree explain their history.

"About twenty years ago, when I was a sweet, young freshman. I met this beautiful man, and I fell in love. And then he told me about his little secret, made me love him even more. Because, you see, I had a little secret of my own that I was _dying_ to share with somebody." Bella eyed her curiously. She wasn't a vampire, so what _was_ she?

"She's a witch," Damon announced quietly. Elena looked up at Bree in awe, but Bella kept her eyes on her shot glass, distractedly nodding to his revelation.

"Changed my world, you know."

"I rocked your world." the redhead rolled her eyes for what felt like the thousandth time since she set foot in the bar.

"He is good in the sack, isn't he?" Bree asked shamelessly, causing Bella to widen her eyes and Elena's gaze shifted uncomfortably to the vampire beside her. Damon watched their humorous expressions with a smirk. "But mostly he's just a walkaway-Joe." she finished, tipping her shot back and giving the dark-haired vampire an unimpressed, hurt glare.

"Amen, sister," Bella added, lifting her glass before downing her own shot. Elena furrowed her eyes in confusion, but refrained from asking anything, seeing Damon frown at her agreement, then letting it go to take his own drink. Bree changed the subject quickly, painting on a brazen smile as she asked the Salvatore.

"So, what is it that you want?"

* * *

Bella intently watched out of the window of Bree's bar at Elena, arms folded over her chest with a glass of gin resting in the palm of her hand. She wanted to listen in, eavesdrop on her conversation but the girl's been through so much already the least she deserved was a little bit of privacy so she could call home. Plus, her priority was to keep her safe, not spy on her. So instead, she spied on Damon, who had situated himself and Bree the witch in a secluded area of the bar to talk.

"Come on, there's gotta be another way," Bella heard as she focused her hearing to the two, still keeping an eye out for Elena at the car as she sat on one of the bar stools by the window, repetitively sipping from her alcohol. She felt like she was babysitting.

"After all these years, it's still only Katherine?" Bree asked, legs propped up onto a table. Damon sighed in agreement; Bella felt her heart shatter slightly, but she shook it off, taking a sip of her drink and kept listening, despite knowing that what they were about to discuss was going to hurt her even more. "How do you even know she's still alive?"

"Well, you help me get into that tomb and we'll find out." he shamelessly flirted.

"I already did. Twenty years ago, remember? Three easy steps - comet, crystal, spell."

 _The bastard is still trying to release Katherine_ , Bella thought. She shook her head disappointingly. Stefan was not going to like this. Hell, _she_ didn't like it. If anyone deserved to have freedom, Katherine Pierce would be the last person on that list. Bella hated her for what she did to Stefan, and even Damon, and for all she cared the evil slut could stay locked in a tomb desiccating for the rest of eternity. Which is exactly what she was intending to make happen, whether her arrogant frenemy liked it or not.

"There's a little problem with number two. I don't _have_ the crystal."

"That's it, Damon. There is no other way. It's Emily's spell." Bree explained. Bella thought back to her first night in Mystic Falls, recounting having to hold Damon back from the young Bennett witch, who had been possessed by her ancestor to destroy the crystal and prevent Damon from releasing twenty seven bloodthirsty, vengeful vampires into the world.

"What about a new spell with a new crystal that overrides Emily's spell?" Damon countered. He was reaching, and he knew it. Bella didn't know a lot about the rules of magic but if she'd learned anything from the witches she'd met over the last three centuries, is that it wasn't that easy.

"It doesn't work that way, baby." Bree cooed, "Emily's spell is absolute. You can't get into that tomb."

* * *

Bored of Damon's incessant pining over Katherine, Bella went to place her now empty glass down on the bar counter. The sound of pool balls clashing together rang in her ears, but she ignored it, making her way back over to the window to check on Elena. Bella saw her look around suspiciously, before answering her phone again. This time, she couldn't help but listen in.

" _Elena, is that you?_ " the redhead wasn't so surprised to hear Stefan's brooding voice question her over the phone. She felt a presence beside her, glancing over to find Damon also focusing his hearing to Elena's conversation. Bella just groaned, feeling disappointed in herself that she'd stooped so low to his level, and ignored his blunt smirk.

" _I'm here,_ " they heard Elena sigh.

" _Where are you?_ " her boyfriend asked hurriedly.

" _You lied,_ " the human harshly accused, earning a wince from the two eavesdropping vampires inside.

" _Not until I explain, please_."

" _So, you didn't lie?_ "

" _Just tell me where you are so that I can come get you... and Bella._ " Stefan pleaded, and the redhead scoffed in disbelief.

"Well, nice of him to remember that I exist." she noted, and Damon shook his head sarcastically with a tight smile across his face.

" _How am I connected to Katherine, Stefan?_ " Elena pressed, starting to pace back and forth beside the car.

" _I honestly don't know._ "

" _And I'm supposed to believe that?_ "

" _It's the truth. I- Listen-_ " Stefan tried to explain, but Elena had already hung up the phone. Ripping her eyes away from the teenager, Bella turned to speak to Damon, but she met thin air, her eyes catching on his figure standing in front of the irritated teenager outside. She groaned, exiting the bar and making her way toward them, leaving the sound of distant chatter and a surprisingly loud blender to reprimand the vampire.

Before she even got to the car, Elena was already storming her way inside, leaving Damon to turn to Bella with a shrug. "God, _what_ did you say?" she sighed, standing with her arms crossed disappointingly at the older Salvatore. He raised his arms in defeat.

"Nothing!"

* * *

"Let's just say that I'm descended from Katherine, does that make me part vampire?" Elena theorised as she picked at the fries on her plate. The two vampires beside her copied her movements, stuffing themselves with the food they'd ordered, but they shook their heads.

Bella began explaining, "Vampires can't procreate-"

"But we love to try." Damon interrupted provocatively, sending a wink toward the redhead that didn't go unnoticed by the teenager watching them. Bella just scoffed, a small smile threatening to creep onto her face as she distracted herself with fries. Damon eyed her, before throwing his attention back to his plate and continuing an explanation for Elena. "No. If you _are_ related, it would mean Katherine had a child before she was turned."

"Right, and what kind of low-life man with _no_ ounce of self respect would even want to go _near_ a she-devil bitch like Katherine Pierce?" Bella joked rhetorically, a faux look of curiosity washing over her face as she leaned into Damon flirtatiously, popping another fry into her mouth. She then looked up at him in shock. "Oh, wait." Bella pointed her finger in his face, watching him amusedly roll his eyes and shove her off of him. She let out a small, breathy laugh as they shared a look before turning their attention back to Elena, who was wanting to learn more about her connection to Katherine.

"Did Stefan think that he could _use_ me to replace her?" the teenager asked with a shudder.

"Kinda creepy if you ask me," Damon commented, but Bella swatted his arm and shook her head.

"Don't listen to him, Elena. Like _ever_ ," she sighed, practically hearing the dark-haired vampire's eyes rolling in his skull, "Stefan is my best friend, therefore I am legally required to defend him in all instances but I'll be honest with you, I'd be freaked out and confused if I was in the same boat as you. But if I've learned anything in the century and a half that I've known him, it's that Stefan is a good guy. He doesn't go for trivial things like looks. He's not like that. Unlike _some_ people I know." Bella finished, face blank as she watched Damon look over at her in disbelief.

"Says the girl who voted for JFK _just_ because she thought he was hot!"

"Okay, but he totally was and I totally got to screw him," Bella showed off, earning an impressed look from Elena. She saw the disappointment in Damon's eyes, taking a moment to tease him, "Jealous much?"

He ignored her comment, shutting up to eat his fries until Elena decided to change the subject. The human had been quizzically watching the two flirt on and off like a switch the entire day and she was starting to get extremely confused about the relationship between the two vampires. "So... when did you guys meet?" she asked innocently.

"Mystic Falls, 1864," Bella answered quickly. She was going to stop there, but Elena made a face that showed her she wanted to know more. "Long story short, me and Lexi found Stefan, Stefan attacked us because he thought we were human, and then he took us back to his house, where _this_ lovesick sop was still brooding over Katherine. Terribly boring you were."

"And _you_ were a lot nicer," Damon added, deflecting her comment about Katherine. "You know, you're awfully rude about someone you never met."

"I've heard the stories. Don't have to meet her to know I don't like her," the redhead countered. He raised his eyebrows, leaning over to pinch the pickles from her plate. "Please, help yourself."

"You don't like them anyway," he retaliated, chucking one into his mouth with a grin, "After all these years I still can't believe you don't like pickles. What's wrong with you?"

"Something about them... tastes off."

Elena observed the vampires, brows furrowed slightly with confusion. "How can you even eat? If technically you're supposed to be-"

"Dead?" Bella finished her sentence blankly, not bothering to even whisper as she kept her eyes trained on her fries. "You can say it, it's not like a vampire slur or something."

"As long as we keep a healthy diet of blood in our systems, our bodies function pretty normally," Damon explained, giving the human a small, genuine smile, causing her to whimsically sigh. She cocked her head to the side.

"This nice act. Is any of it real?"

"Well, I can answer that-" Bella began tormenting her vampire companion, he let out a scoff but Bree interrupted them as she placed down two beers on the counter.

"Here you go, honey," she said, replacing their old bottles with new ones. Bella gave her a small smile, raising her beer in the air to Damon and tipping the drink back. She placed it back down onto the counter, hearing Elena speak up bravely to the dark-skinned witch, who was about to walk away.

"I'll have one, too." she ordered confidently, causing both vampires to look over at her in disbelief.

"Elena you don't have to-" Bella tried to assure the human but she had already made up her mind, crossing her hands into a T-shape as she explained herself.

"Time out, remember? For _five_ minutes? Yeah, well that five minutes is gonna need a beer."

Bree looked impressed, snapping the lid off of another bottle of beer and placing it down in front of Elena, who smiled gratefully. "There you go," the three knocked their bottle necks together in cheers, and Bella and Damon watched the teenager down some of her alcohol, face contorting into discomfort at the unusual taste, but she stood her ground, slamming the glass back down onto the counter, both vampires giving her approving nods.

* * *

After about an hour or so, Elena was pretty much hammered, managing to out-drink even Damon, a certified alcoholic. Bella was doing just fine, bonding and laughing with the human as they downed their third shot within the crowd of people that they'd managed to draw in.

"That's three!" she exclaimed excitedly, turning to look at the redhead with a huge smile plastered over her face.

Ripping her green eyes from the human, Bella heard Damon almost sputtering his drink as he coughed, wiping his face dry. "Aw, do you need a bib, baby?" she teased, leaning in somewhat drunkenly to the vampire's side. He squinted his icy blue eyes at her, looking down at the redhead's pouty, glowing face. She always seemed to sparkle when she was having fun.

"Sorry I can't unhinge my jaw like a snake to consume alcohol." he retorted, and Bella didn't bother with a remark, instead just winking flirtatiously. She turned to watch Elena jump up, signalling how high her alcohol tolerance was, though Bella highly doubted it would last so long.

A few shots later, Elena grew bored, dragging her new red-haired vampire friend over to the pool table much to her chagrin. "Come on, just one game, I could totally beat you!" she challenged arrogantly. Bella exchanged a helpless look to Damon, who merely shrugged his shoulders and gave her a sly smirk, but she reluctantly let the drunken human lead her through the bar to the nearest pool table.

"Fine, but I'll have you know I have been the master of pool since it was _invented_ ," the red-haired vampire boasted, sending a wink to Elena, who was messily setting up the pool table for them to play with a concentrated look on her face.

" _Okay_ , I get it you're like, super old. I'll let you do the honours," Elena offered, thrusting a cue stick into her hands, referring to breaking the triangle she had intricately racked up despite barely being able to stand without tripping herself over. Bella took the cue, strutting to the end of the pool table, catching a glance at Damon, who was watching the female intently, but she acted like she didn't notice. Bending over the table somewhat seductively, the redhead lined up her shot, before drawing back her hand and powerfully hitting the white pool ball. A loud crash emitted from the rack, sending them speeding around the green table, managing to pocket three solids.

"Solids for Bella," the vampire announced and Elena looked at her, impressed. But she just shrugged, relaxing her stance and letting the human take her turn. Bella saw out of the corner of her eye that Damon was still checking her out, his icy eyes roaming over her body, dazzled by her skills that he'd seen firsthand years ago. Just to tease the son of a bitch, when it was her turn again, Bella would suggestively lean over the table to get her shot, even taking the liberty of looking up towards Damon with sultry green eyes to make him realise she knew he was watching.

This didn't go unnoticed by Elena, whose messy, intoxicated state made her somewhat braver than usual. "So, what's going on with you and Damon?" she asked casually, weakly hitting a ball and somehow managing to pocket it. Bella looked at her questioningly, leaning against her cue stick.

"What do you mean?" Bella countered, trying to play dumb. Plus she knew Damon was probably listening even if he'd turned back to face the bar for a second.

"I _mean_ , you and Damon... there's _totally_ something more than just friends."

"Me and Damon are _frenemies_ at best. We fight, we joke, nothing more than that."

Elena glanced up at her in disbelief, rolling her eyes at the vampire's obscurity. "Come on, Bella, I'm not stupid. You guys have been flirting since the moment we woke up in his car."

Bella just shook her head, not giving in to the human's attempt at girl talk, "Nope, nothing. Just... friends, that's all. Plus, you know, his brother is my best friend. Would be kinda weird, don't you think?" she asked rhetorically, moving to take her turn. "Speaking of Stefan, what are you gonna say to him when we get back?"

"I- I don't know. I mean, what the hell am I supposed to say? He knows how I feel about the whole thing. He lied to me." Elena sighed, continuing the game to try to distract herself from the conversation. Bella stayed silent, letting the girl rant but she didn't press on. In all honesty, she didn't know how else to defend her friend, and it wasn't her fight to be having.

"You guys will get through it. He- he really likes you, and he wouldn't do anything to purposefully hurt you." Bella consoled, taking her last shot and dunking the black 8-ball into a corner pocket, cheering out loudly with her hands raised above her head. "And that's how you win at pool!" she exclaimed, earning a frustrated groan from the loser Elena. Bella moved to the girl, handing over her cue, "Better luck next time, kid. I'm gonna grab a drink, can feel the buzz slowly melting out of me."

The red-haired vampire left the teenager, who turned to talk to one of the ladies that had taken all those shots with them earlier and most likely try to prove that she can actually win at pool. But the vampire strutted up to the bar, sitting herself next to Damon, who gave her a once over.

"'Just friends'... ouch," he commented, manifesting her idea that he'd been listening to her conversation with Elena.

Bella flicked her hair over her shoulder, "Actually, I said 'frenemies at best'. Don't flatter yourself." she retorted. She felt Damon's eyes over her, but didn't budge, waiting to order from Bree.

"Frenemies... with benefits," he added slyly, his signature arrogant smirk forming over his face, making Bella roll her eyes at him.

"There are no benefits to being around you, Damon."

"No?"

"No."

"Stop being such a buzzkill," he changed the subject with a groan, taking a final sip of his beer. Bella raised her eyebrows at him, placing a hand over her chest.

"Oh, I'm sorry, being taken to the middle of nowhere against my will and blackmailed kind of dials down my excitement meter," the sarcasm practically dripped from her tongue as she pouted at Damon, who turned towards her on his bar stool.

"Come on, just have some fun with me," he pleaded, giving her the innocent look, "Like old times."

Bella reminisced about the years she had spent partying all those years ago with Damon, the memories blurry and fast and loud but exciting all the same time. Despite her complicated feelings, they were still simpler times, their days consisted of sleeping, drinking, dancing and a lot more sex than she ever thought was humanly possible. But that was the best part of it.. they _weren't_ human.

Snapping back to reality, the redhead gave Damon a cheeky grin, turning to Bree with a mischievous glint in her emerald eye. "Bree, can I get two tequila shots, please? With salt and lime," she requested, avoiding eye contact with the vampire beside her as the witch quickly provided her with her order. Without question, Damon went to pick up the shot, not bothering with the salt or lime, but Bella snatched it from his hand, making sure not to spill any. "Nuh-uh, Mr Salvatore, we're doing this _my_ way."

The dark-haired vampire watched with curiosity as Bella took the salt in her hand.

"Remember JFK?" she asked, and Damon nodded obediently, "Well, he liked it when we did this." she said cryptically, before leaning in closer until her lips ghosted over his neck, he felt her hot breath over his skin, and she quickly replaced it by tantalisingly running her tongue over the exposed patch of skin between his shoulder and neck. Damon stifled a groan, feeling her soft red hair against his chin and he let her sprinkle the salt over the wet area, taking the lime off of the bar in preparation. Her tongue swiped over his skin again, catching every last grain of salt from his pale complexion, then holding him in a captivating stare as she threw back her tequila.

"That JFK was one smart guy," Damon remarked, gently grabbing Bella's chin as he fed her the lime, letting her bite off the insides then throwing the skin down onto the counter. 

"Well, he was also a pretty stupid guy," she replied, leaning her elbows on the counter. "Everything was perfectly fine until he cheated on me with that _slut_ , Marilyn Monroe."

Damon raised his brows in amusement, taking a sip of the beer Bree had automatically replaced for him. "Confession time! You killed her, didn't you?" he asked playfully, but the redhead just gave him a suspicious wink.

"Guess we'll never know," she teased, "Now, your turn."

Without another word exchanged, he took the salt out of her hand and mimicked the female vampire's earlier movements, leaning in intoxicatingly slowly, scooping her long hair from her shoulder and then letting his lips trail along her neck, as if searching for the right spot to attack. Then he found it, sliding his tongue against the smooth skin of Bella's neck, hearing her sigh into the air. He even resisted the urge to sink his fangs into the crook of her neck, suddenly missing the last time they'd blood-shared, but he merely poured salt onto her skin and let his tongue sweep it back up.

Bella handed him his own shot, which he gratefully chucked down his throat, and she slowly placed the lime into his mouth just as he had done to her. He bit down, sucking the sour juices of the fruit and she then pulled it away, but Damon grabbed her wrist before she could move too far from him. His eyes skimmed down her body, the sexual tension rising quickly between them as she did the same, and then licked her lips. The dark-haired vampire leaned in close to her ear, his voice barely a whisper over the loud chatter and incessant music in the bar but Bella could hear him clear as day.

"Let's go," he instructed, and she knew exactly what he was hinting at. They shared a knowing look once he'd pulled away, standing up from his seat to lead Bella somewhere more secluded, but she stayed put, ripping her hand from grasp.

She can't. It's not fair to herself to allow him to keep playing her like this. She told herself she wouldn't let him. Sure, she had flirted with him but that was just part of their dynamic. Insults and innuendos. That was all. So she thought.

"But what about Elena?" she whisper-yelled, trying to make excuses despite so desperately wanting to rush into the nearest cubicle and feel his hands explore her body like they had a thousand times over.

"She's drunk as shit, look at her," their eyes shifted to the overexcited teenager, cheering over finally winning a game of pool with one of the strangers. "She won't even notice we're gone." his attempt at convincing failed, however, as Bella made herself more comfortable on her seat and crossed her arms defiantly.

"Nah. I'm good," she stated simply, turning away from the vampire. 

Damon stood almost in shock, "You're _good_? You can't seriously expect me to be calm after that little stunt." he said, referring to her suggestive body shots. The vampire took his seat next to her again, tracing his finger gently against the smooth skin on her arm in an attempt to convince her, but Bella moved it away.

"I suggest you be a big boy and suck it up. Hey, maybe your little witch-with-benefits might be up for it, though!" the red-haired vampire spat, a mixture of sarcasm and jealousy lacing her tone, giving a distracted Bree the evil eye.

"Anabella King, are you _jealous_?" Damon scoffed amusedly, trying to hold in his boisterous laughter. Bella gave him a dangerous look, rolling her eyes in frustration.

"Absolutely not. Whoever you hook up with in your spare time is none of my concern remember?" she reminded casually, raising an eyebrow at her company. He held up his hands, almost in surrender, letting her use his own words against him. Bella lifted herself from her seat, leaving Damon in silence to mingle with the crowd of drinkers, not wanting to spend another minute bickering with the vampire.

Whilst talking with an extremely boring stranger who'd definitely had way too much to drink, Bella observed the bar, watching Elena pick up her phone and rush out of the bar, struggling to get her arm into her jacket. The redhead squinted her eyes, excusing herself from the intoxicated woman to follow the human.

"Elena?" Bella called out, making her way into the darkness of the night. It was cold, much worse than the nice, warm bar with nice, warm human bodies and an entire bar of alcohol to keep _her_ warm. But she didn't let it bother her, walking up the steps to the porch to search for her best friend's girlfriend. "Elena, where are y-"

Before she could continue, a loud crack resonated through the parking lot, the vampire's long fiery hair twirling as her head is violently twisted around her neck by a pair of unknown hands. Bella's body was left to fall limp, tumbling down with anything but grace onto the hard wooden floor.

* * *

Damon sat himself down back down onto the bar stool with a grunt, about to order another round of drinks before Bree greeted him.

"Hey, where're your girls?" she asked curiously, fixing a drink for one of the other customers. Damon hummed, looking around to the corner where he'd last seen Elena, only to find a few strangers chatting, without the human beside them.

"Well, _one_ of them was right back there," he thought out loud, turning his head to the drunken woman he saw Bella reluctantly talking to after she'd stormed away from him. "The other one was over there."

His suspicious blue eyes scanned the room again, catching his attention on the slightly open door. Without ripping his eyes from the exit, Damon made his way around the bar and pushed open the creaky door and stepped outside. He looked around, studying the parking lot before spotting a body on the ground. He recognised that red hair anywhere, quickly rushing over the vampire sprawled carelessly over the floor, then lifting her limp body up to lean against the wall of the bar. 

"Damn it," Damon whispered, mostly to himself seeing as the female vampire was left temporarily comatose. Subconsciously, the dark-haired vampire checked her over, kneeling beside her and letting his hand caress her smooth cheek, then gently grab her chin. Someone had snapped her neck. The question was by who? And _why_?

Damon grunted frustratedly, standing to do some investigating when he spotted the glowing screen of a phone on the ground underneath where Bella had been left. He knelt down to quickly grab it, realising it was Elena's and that the human could be in more trouble than he'd anticipated.

Knowing Bella would be alright when she eventually woke up, though he knew he'd be getting an earful of complaints when she got the chance, Damon aimlessly followed his instincts and searched for his brother's vulnerable girlfriend.

* * *

Bella's fingers began twitching slightly against the cold wooden slats, eventually mobility surging through her entire arm, then up to her neck, causing her to jolt forward from the wall she was leaned against, gasping deeply. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness that engulfed her; she rubbed her neck, trying to ease the pain as it quickly began to dissipate from her nerves. Someone snapped her neck. The redhead so desperately wanted to blame Damon, to give herself another reason not to like him on her mental checklist, but she couldn't, it wasn't him. He didn't have a reason to. So who did it?

The female vampire groaned, lifting herself up from the floor and wiping off the dust from her jeans. She began her search again for Elena, storming angrily along the bar, before she heard the human's desperate voice.

" _Don't do this! I'm begging you!_ " The girl cried, and Bella followed the sound, rounding the bar and finding a power plant building. She quickly made her way around it, hearing pained grunts and groans as well as Elena, almost in tears. The vampire peeked around a corner, making sure it was safe to come out, spotting Damon being lifted aggressively from the ground by someone whose face she couldn't see. Presumably also the person that had snapped her neck to get her away from Elena. Before she could intervene, the unknown threat violently threw Damon into the side of the building, an extremely loud bang echoing through the plant.

"Damon!" Bella yelled out instinctively, and she flashed over to the vampire who'd thrown him, pinning him down to the ground by the throat.

"Bella?" the vampire choked out, and both pairs of eyes widened as they scanned each other's face, finally recognising each other. The redhead was confused, her brows furrowing, uncertain what to do once she recognised her old friend.

"Lee? You- You're a-" Bella couldn't finish her words, and she loosened her grip on the guy's throat, allowing him to breathe and nod slowly. Shock sent waves through her body, suddenly hearing Damon groaning in pain and remembering the situation she was in. Elena rushed over to the injured vampire to see if he was okay. "Lexi- She turned you?"

Lee nodded again, his anger towards Damon rendering him speechless as his hard gaze kept switching between his old friend and the vampire squirming painfully on the ground. Bella turned to Damon too, then slowly back at Lee, smelling the potent gasoline and seeing a burned out match in his hand. "Why were you trying to kill Damon? And-and where's Lexi I haven't heard from her in days!" she rambled on, suddenly overwhelmed with shock and confusion and remembering the fact that her best friend had practically gone missing and she'd done nothing about it.

" _Damon_ killed her." Lee spat, giving his old friend an apologetic look, then quickly flashing away, vanishing into thin air as if he was never there in the first place.

Bella breathed in shakily, feeling her face twitch uncontrollably and tears began rolling down her hot cheeks. She was stunned at Lee's words. They played over and over in her head, branding into her brain like a hot iron. Everything was starting to make sense: Lexi not answering any calls or messages, not picking Bella up from the airport, the random nameless vampire that Damon had staked for the council. No wonder neither brother had anything to say about her disappearance. They lied to her. Damon had lied. _Stefan_ had lied. Their best friend was dead and he had lied straight through his teeth about it.

Lexi didn't disappear. She was _dead_. And at the thought, a rage consumed Bella, the anger and panic and grief steaming out of her entire body all at once as she trembled with vexation.

Without a second thought, the fiery vampire flashed over to Damon, barging past Elena and violently seizing him by the shirt, holding him down against the hard concrete. He squirmed beneath her grasp, trying to push her wrist away but his strength was unmatchable to hers in her state of vicious fury. She wanted to hurt him, like he'd hurt her. She wanted to rip out his throat or his heart or take his head clean off of his shoulders. She didn't want to hear his excuses, she didn't care about the sound of Elena's distressed yelling in his defence. But tears kept streaming down her face, dark veins appearing on her wet cheeks with green bloodshot eyes searching his face for an inch of truth.

"Tell me he's lying, Damon!" she screamed, feeling his groans vibrate through his chest and his breathing slow down, "Tell me you didn't _murder_ my best friend!"

"I didn't!" he denied, face contorting with pain as she moved her grip to his throat, squeezing it tightly, almost expecting an answer to come out of him quicker.

"Liar!" she snarled, fangs bearing in his face and he had to admit, Damon was actually frightened for his life. He thought quickly, mind racing with excuses and reasons, ultimately deciding that telling the truth was going end up with his heart ripped from his chest.

"It wasn't me! I swear, please Bella, believe me!" he choked out, feeling Bella's clasp on his neck come slightly looser. She couldn't, for the life of her, think of one reason not to. And something snapped inside of her.

The red-haired vampire's face was wiped blank, tears still slowly falling onto her cheeks, letting her veins hide back beneath her skin and eyes return back to their normal colour. She was stuck. In one place. Every dead nerve in her body ached and yearned for her best friend, and the fact that she was never going to see her ever again sent a wave of pain through her spine that she'd only ever experienced one other time in her entire life. She fell to the ground, staring into space, letting the grief consume her a second at a time, and suddenly she felt like she was drowning.

It was the first time in a long time that Damon had seen Anabella King cry.

"Lexi..." she breathed out, memories of her best friend flashing in her mind. Every time Lexi had dragged her back to reality, turned on her switch, helped her control her hunger, laughed with her, teased Stefan with her. It was all _wasted_.

Bella didn't move from the concrete floor. She blocked out everything around her. She didn't hear Elena's quiet whimpering, she didn't hear Damon's groans as he stumbled his way up from the ground. Everything was white noise to her, temporarily living in her own trance. Until a hand gently stroked her shoulder, moving her mess of hair from her tear-stained face. Bella's head snapped to the side, seeing that it was Damon's hand that had rested on her shoulder, and she shrugged it off with disgust, standing up faster than he could blink and she silently stalked away without so much as a glance at either of the two.

A while later, Bella was sat on the hood of Damon's car, knees hugged tightly to her chest and a large bottle of straight gin hanging loosely from her hand that Damon had supplied her with to make sure she didn't cry again. He would probably never admit it, but a tiny piece of his heart broke when he witnessed her breakdown, and he really didn't want to feel that guilt again in such a small window of time. At least gin was a depressant.

Elena's eyebrows were furrowed as she thought. She'd seen the entire situation go down and all she could think about was why Damon continued to lie to Bella's face. It's not like she would actually kill him if she knew the truth. Wouldn't she be worse if she found out the truth after being lied to for so long? The human shook her head, glancing over to the redhead, who was staring blankly at the ground, taking long chugs of her alcohol like an upset baby with a bottle of milk, before pushing off of the side of the car and making her way into the bar, where she'd seen Damon disappear to moments after giving Bella her drink.

The human spotted Damon behind the bar, no one else, not even Bree, in sight, washing his hands at a sink in the counter. She cocked her head to the side once he made eye contact with her. "You ready to go?" he asked casually, wiping his hands on a towel and Elena sighed at the blood that rubbed off onto it, but opted to ignore it.

"You lied to Bella." she breathed out, accusation lacing her tone. It was Damon's turn to sigh, rounding the bar and picking his jacket up from the bar stool he had situated at before he was almost killed twice in the space of twenty minutes. "Why?"

He locked his blue eyes with hers, raising his eyebrows. "If you couldn't already tell, she's batshit crazy." he explained sarcastically, trying to deflect her accusations.

"But... you _lied_. Right to her face. Would she really kill you if she knew the truth?" Elena questioned softly, hoping to whatever higher power that Bella was still too depressed and spaced out to be eavesdropping on their conversation.

"Not everyone is as forgiving as you, Elena. If Bella finds out the truth, I'm in for a punishment worse than death. It would be her last straw." Damon swung his leather jacket over his shoulder, slowly making his way toward the concerned human, "Maybe one day, fifty or sixty years from now, I can tell her and she can chase me down to the ends of the earth. Not that you'll be around to see it."

With his cold words lingering in the air, Elena followed Damon out of the empty bar.

* * *

The sun was barely rising, a hue of oranges and pinks emerging into the starry night sky, when Damon started driving the three of them back. Elena fell asleep almost as soon as she buckled her seat belt, and Bella was still drained and exhausted from grieving and drinking all night. She managed to finish the bottle of gin by the time the sun fully rose, its golden rays reflecting off of her rosy cheeks, giving her a sad yet beautiful glow about her.

Damon flickered his eyes over the vampire, giving her a once over before he spoke. "Feel better?" he asked quietly, not knowing whether she was going to explode like a bomb again or not. Luckily for him and the sleeping lookalike in the back, she took a calm breath.

"Well, I'm not crying anymore," a hint of sarcasm laced her reply, silently meaning she didn't want to talk about it, which Damon understood, not wanting to press her buttons any more than he already had. Bella shifted her body in the seat to face him, but the vampire kept his eyes on the road ahead. "So, tell me, what was the reason it was so important for me to come on this little excursion with you?" she asked quietly, not wanting to wake the sleeping teenager behind them. 

Damon shook his head slowly. He gazed over at Bella, then back at the road, "You know you're not the worst company in the world, Bella. You should give yourself more credit."

"Do you seriously expect me to believe that?"

"I don't know," the dark-haired vampire admitted, a genuine look over his face. "You pissed me off, I snapped your neck. Then... I felt bad-"

"Wait, you felt _bad_?" Bella scoffed in humorous disbelief, a small smile forming over her face.

"Yes, Anabella, I felt _bad_." Damon repeated, "That so hard to believe?"

The redhead gaped her mouth open in shock, but she let out a breathy chuckle, slowly shaking her head. "Where was this attitude thirty years ago, huh?" she joked, hinting at their last big fight. Damon just laughed lightly.

"I just.. I wanted a way to make it up to you, I guess."

"By blackmailing me with my most prized possession?"

"Well, I needed _some_ leverage so that you didn't snap my neck," he replied, shrugging. "And you can actually be fun when you want to be. When will I ever get to do dirty tequila shots like _that_ again?"

"I _invented_ fun, Damon." Bella retorted, "I don't know, compel some innocent girl to do them with you."

"But you do it _so_ much better than they would," he whined jokingly, giving her his signature smirk but she ignored it, training her eyes on the road in front of them. "And... you're _not_ the worst company in the world, Bella."

The redhead appreciated his compliment, and the passive smile that crossed his lips. But she knew his kindness was just temporary, it always was. She knew that once he found a way to get Katherine back, she'd be nothing but a distant memory, gone with the wind; just another one of the girls he'd charmed into falling for him. But she shook it off, trying to force herself to just, for once, enjoy the moment, not think too deeply into every single move he made because the only person getting hurt was herself.

"I saved your life today," Bella changed the subject, a smug smile plastered on her face.

"I know."

"You owe me."

"What is your preferred method of payment?" Damon joked, both vampires letting out another chuckle at his flirtation.

* * *

By late morning, Damon had managed to get all three back to the Salvatore House in one piece. As he pulled the car to a stop, Elena stirred, slowly waking herself up. She groaned when she realised their location, and sighed, raising her eyebrows with hope at Bella before heading inside most likely to have a straining conversation with Stefan.

"Hope she doesn't tear him apart too much," Bella commented, making herself comfortable on the hood of Damon's car, splaying out exhaustively, "I still need to have a word with him."

"God help the poor son of a bitch. Shove over." Damon retorted, tapping her hip, signalling for her to move over to make room for him on the car. He lifted himself with ease beside her, the pair laying against the windshield, watching birds fly over their heads and the sun lightly catching their skin.

"Who killed her?"

"Bella, do you really think it matters-" he began, trying to convince her that she didn't need to know. If she dropped it, he wouldn't have to lie anymore.

"It's _Lexi_ , Damon. She deserves vengeance." Bella stated simply, her eyes practically begging him as she stared into his.

"Sheriff Forbes." he lied, the guilt shooting through his heart. It hurt him to keep lying to her, but he kept reminding himself it was better than death. Bella nodded understandably, looking back up at the clear morning sky and Damon had known her long enough to know that she was most likely already planning Liz's slow, painful death as revenge for the death of her best friend.

To change the subject and keep her mind off of her murdering one of the most important members of the Council, Damon pulled out her photograph from his inside pocket, waving it in front of her. "I said you could have this back when we get to Mystic Falls." he reminded her, watching Bella's eyes glisten and a small smile form on her lips.

"Thank you."


	4. Unpleasantville

After a rather miserable argument about Lexi that they promised each other to never repeat again for as long as they exist, it was settled that Stefan and Bella would be staying in Mystic Falls. With anonymous vampires going after Elena, and his big brother threatening to release twenty seven of them to rip apart the town, Stefan decided it wasn't safe enough for him to just leave his girlfriend and her family without protection. Bella couldn't agree more, after their little trip to Georgia, she'd actually grown to like the human, despite how that night eventually ended, and she'd hate to see anything bad happen to her. She _especially_ wouldn't want that for Stefan.

So, Bella compelled Italy's finest moving company to send her stuff over to Mystic Falls for her to set up camp in one of the spare rooms of the Salvatore Boarding House. If she was honest, she could have just gotten her own place, compelled herself an apartment or a house, whatever she wanted, but Stefan insisted she stay with them. Bella had the movers put all of her boxes in her new room, closer to Stefan's side of the house than Damon's, and she spent almost the entire day unpacking.

Damon and Bella hadn't actually exchanged more than a word to each other since they got back from Georgia. She'd come to the conclusion that revisiting their frenemies-with-benefits situation was only hurting her, and that all the feelings that she'd suppressed all those years ago were starting to resurface. She was different person now, a lot had happened since 1922 and she couldn't afford to get her heart broken again. So, as from now, their deal was off, it was a silent understanding between the two. Damon was sure she'd break, that Bella would come crawling back to him and begging for him but she was keeping her mind preoccupied on other things. Like the decade dance Stefan and Elena had invited her to at the high school.

"Is it possible for vampires to get fat?" Bella whined, holding up her favourite fifties dress against her waist, scrutinising it judgmentally and prodding at her toned stomach, "I don't remember having to remove my rib cage to fit into this thing." She chucked the garment back in the box labelled ' _50s_ ', huffing at Stefan.

"I don't think so," he admitted, chuckling at his friend's disdain. She then picked out an authentic pair of skin-tight black leather pants, throwing them onto the bed beside him, as well as a plain black bardot and a dark green scarf. Best thing about being a vampire was being able to take part in all of the fashion trends that were popular over the years. Bella had managed to save a few of her favourite outfits from each decade, but the 50s was definitely her least favourite. "I still think you should've gone with the poodle skirt.. or the Pink Ladies jacket you stole from Grease!" Stefan suggested as his eyes caught sight of a baby pink sleeve poking out of the cardboard box.

"God, I remember sneaking onto the set. John Travolta was so much hotter back then." Bella sighed whimsically, reminiscing about being in such close proximity to the young actor. "Hey, do you still have the T-Birds jacket?"

Stefan thought for a second, trying to mentally locate the iconic leather jacket. "Must be around the house _somewhere_. Unless it miraculously disappeared from my collection. I know how much you love a leather jacket." he accused playfully, and Bella rolled her eyes, holding up her hands in surrender.

"Nuh-uh, don't look at me. I'm not the only one with a leather obsession in this house." she hinted to his older brother, and they both chuckled. The red-haired vampire knelt down to the box on the floor, inspecting the rest of the garments that she had deemed unacceptable for a school dance. Her hands felt a soft thin material shoved right at the bottom of the box, giving Stefan a curious look as she grabbed the fabric and pulled it out into the open.

Bella recognised it instantly. She held up a large, dark blue men's cardigan, straight from a fifties catalogue. Her face turned blank, biting down on her bottom lip to stop tears from rolling down her hot cheeks. Stefan glanced over at her, watching the vampire shiver, placing the sweater down onto her lap and letting her small, trembling hand trace gently over the bright white letter embroidered onto the front left pocket. 

"B.." he read out, concern lacing his voice, wondering desperately why a basic piece of clothing would get her so worked up. His mind raced with ideas about what the letter could stand for, coming up with one simple conclusion. "Bella?" he suggested uncertainly, furrowing his brows once she shook her head at his guess.

" _Benjamin_." she stated simply, taking in a deep breath and giving him a small, saddened smile. It had been a while since she'd said his name out loud, almost sounding foreign to her now. Stefan sighed, an apologetic look over his face when he leaned down next to his friend, a hand soothingly rubbing her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Bella." he consoled.

Bella shook her head disdainfully, letting out a heavy sigh as she threw the significant cardigan back into the box. She dismissed his condolences, closing up the box and kicking it effortlessly to the other side of the room.

"Not your fault." the redhead said blankly, walking past him to scrutinise her monochromatic fifties ensemble. Stefan stayed in place, concern etching into his features.

"You can talk to me, you know," the male vampire reminded her, causing Bella to stop and look up from unnecessarily fiddling with the clothes on her bed. She slowly turned to face him, keeping her expression deadpan and careless.

"Not about this."

"Yes, about this." he pressed on, steadily walking towards his friend, who refused to make eye contact with him, opting for staring at her daylight ring as she twisted it around her finger. "I know what you went through was hard but keeping it all bottled up inside isn't going to help you."

"I _know_ Stef," Bella breathed out shakily, "I know," she paused for a second, thinking of the right words to explain herself, "But it's just too hard. Every time I think about it even just for a second, it all comes rushing back and I have to experience losing him all over again. And I don't want to feel that pain. Or I'll end up shutting it off, and you'll lose me. Again. You're my best friend, Stefan, I trust you more than anyone in the whole world, but this... this stays with me."

She looked like she was about to cry by the end of her speech, lip trembling as she spoke and green eyes threatening to spill tears. Stefan nodded understandably, reaching his arms out to her shoulders and pulling her close to his chest, resting his chin against her soft red hair. "Okay, okay," he comforted lightly. "I'm sorry."

Bella pulled away from him, placing her hands flat against his chest to make eye contact with the taller vampire. "All good, little Salvatore." she smiled, a genuine one this time, quickly changing the subject so she didn't spend too much time dwelling on their current one. She glanced at the black outfit laid out on the bed behind her, feeling Stefan return his arms to his sides. "Right, evacuate the room, I need to get dressed. We've managed to avoid seeing each other butt naked for the last century and a half and I don't feel like breaking that record any time soon." she joked, pushing the tittering vampire harshly towards her bedroom door.

"Me neither," Stefan agreed, making a disgusted face at his friend, who retorted with a sarcastic shocked expression, "Remember, you have an hour before we have to be at Elena's!"

"Whatever!" she called out, shoving him once more into the hall and slamming her bedroom door behind him.

Once she was alone, Bella scanned her messy room, boxes scattered everywhere and knickknacks dotted all around the place. She let out a weary sigh, rubbing a hand over her face before pulling herself together to get ready for the dance.

* * *

**London, England**   
**1951**

_Loud chatter and music poured out from every nightclub onto the dark street. The only light coming from the pools of streetlamps scattered down the roads, illuminating the silver droplets of rain that fell from the cloudy grey skies._

_Bella King strolled along the sidewalk, heels clicking against the tarmac, with a bottle of gin hanging from her hand. She swung around on one of the lampposts, spinning herself graciously, feeling the rain patter down on her cold skin, soaking her tight greaser dress._

_She'd been wandering through the night for hours, passing in and out through different nightclubs, drinking, feeding. Bored, mostly. Lexi had suggested she take some time for herself, travel, make friends, experience the modern world. So she did. It was good for a while, the first few months were actually amazing. But as time went on, Bella grew lonely. Of course, she could have always gone back, found Lexi and helped her look after Stefan, but she felt like she owed this to herself, for some reason._

_So, there she was, wandering down the streets of London, drinking, without a care in the world, when suddenly an uproar of yells erupted from a nearby alley. Bella's ear pricked up, focusing her super-hearing on desperate cries and maniacal laughter. She left the bottle of gin on a bench, flashing her way toward the sound._

_There were two men kicking and shouting at something crouched down on the floor. Their victim whined in pain, grunting and groaning with every blow, and Bella's blood boiled._

_Darting in front of the men, the red-haired vampire snarled, causing them to step back in shock. "Get out of here!" she yelled, eyebrows furrowed angrily. One of the men just laughed, going to push the woman, but she caught his hand before it reached her, twisting his wrist around mercilessly as he began crying out in pain._

_Bella's green eyes turned bloodshot, veins darkening across her cheeks. She bared her sharp fangs at him, making the human tremble in her grasp. She pushed him across the alley, hearing his body collide with the brick wall and a pained groan escape his chest._

_"What the hell!" the other human yelled, rushing over to his friend to help him up, glaring up at the vampire with a petrified glint in his eyes. "What are you!"_

_"Leave, now. You won't tell a soul about what you saw." Bella compelled both men, who nodded mechanically and ran back down to the entrance of the alley, onto the wet street, never to be seen again._

_Hearing a whimper, the red-haired vampire snapped her neck around to watch the injured man squirm around on the dirty concrete. His clothes were torn and filthy, bruises littered his dark skin and fresh blood was gleaming in the moonlight. Bella felt the veins harden around her eyes and her fangs push back through her gums. but she shook it away, quickly making her way over to the struggling human._

_His eyes were wide when he looked up at the woman, pure shock written over his face, when she bared her teeth again, biting down onto her own wrist and ripping away a chunk of her own pale skin without even blinking. She leaned down onto the concrete beside him, gently shushing his panicked groans and placed her wrist against his lips. In an instinct, the man clamped his mouth around the quickly healing wound, letting her rich blood trickle down his throat._

_"Th-Thank you," the damaged human sputtered, releasing Bella's wrist from his tight grasp. He felt the strange sensation of his body healing itself, dark skin materialising over his bleeding wounds, bruises disappearing into nothing. He stared down at himself in shock, then back up at the mysterious woman that had saved his life. But he wasn't afraid._

_"No problem." she replied casually, lifting herself from her knees and offering him her hand. He took it gratefully, letting the ridiculously strong stranger pull him lightly up from the ground of the alleyway. When they were both at eye level, Bella's green pupils dilated, concentrating on his golden irises, as she spoke. "Now, forget this happened. And be careful, next time."_

_The dark-skinned man laughed breathily, causing Bella to furrow her brows. "That's not going to work on me." he stated cryptically, cocking his head to the side at the redhead. She kept her confused gaze on him, before he continued to introduce himself._ _"The name's Benjamin. Benjamin Bennett."_

* * *

Exactly an hour later, just as Stefan had requested, both vampires were dressed up like it was the 1950's again. Bella's tight leather trousers hugged her waist snugly and black bardot showed off her prominent collarbones; she had a silky forest green scarf tied loosely around her neck and chunky hoop earrings hanging from her ears. Her cheekbones sparkled and green eyes complimented the pale shadow she'd swiped across her lids. To say she looked pretty was an understatement.

The vampire friends made their way to Elena's house. Stefan showed her some of the town, explaining a bit of its history as they passed certain buildings. They laughed and joked in the empty roads, racing to see who could flash the furthest, of course Bella knocking him out of the park every time. As they entered the suburban area that Elena lived, edging closer and closer to her home, Bella sensed something was off.

"Stefan," she whispered, freezing in the middle of the road and pulling his arm back, "Someone's there."

Stefan scanned the house, spotting a dark figure lurking on Elena's porch, quickly entering through the front door and a sudden loud scream echoed onto the street. Within seconds, he flashed over to the house, following the sound of the teenager's cry. Bella was directly behind him, but an invisible barrier prevented her from crossing the threshold, only being able to watch as Stefan threw an unknown vampire off of Elena, who fell hopelessly to the floor. The redhead pushed her hand against the force, wanting to help, but she was stuck. A menacing hiss came from the human's attacker, before he disappeared, flashing through the house and escaping through the back door.

Breathing heavily, Elena clasped onto Stefan's jacket with trembling hands like he was her lifeline. Bella coughed awkwardly, standing on the front porch with her hands crossed behind her back, swinging patiently on her heels as she waited to be invited in. "Not to be insensitive or anything but..." she trailed off, eyes scanning the front doorway at the invisible force, lifting a forbidden hand up to it and feeling it push her back slightly.

"Oh, sorry," the teenager breathed, sighing heavily before she invited the red-haired vampire into her home.

After the two vampires helped Elena calm down, Bella searched the house quickly to make sure the threat was definitely gone. He had been invited in, nothing was stopping him from hiding in a closet or something to wait to attack again. Coming up short of a maniacal vampire, she called Damon, who turned up at the house within moments of putting down the phone.

"How'd he get in?" he questioned, pacing into the living room after having no trouble passing the threshold.

"He was invited in," the human stated simply.

Stefan elaborated, his brows furrowed with concern, a soothing hand placed on his girlfriend's knee. "He posed as a pizza delivery guy last night."

"Well, he gets points for that," Bella commented sarcastically under her breath. Damon nodded at her in agreement, turning to Elena with more questions playing on his mind as he entered further into the room.

"Did he say what he wanted?"

"No. He was too busy trying to kill me," Elena spat impatiently.

The female vampire turned to Damon, who slowly made his way to take a stance beside her. "And you have no idea who this is?" she asked suspiciously, but he shook his head, unbothered by her masked accusation.

"No." he denied quickly, but Bella and Stefan both gave him unsure looks, to which he squinted his eyes at the redhead, "Don't look at me like that. I told both of you that we had company."

Elena looked up at the older Salvatore brother worriedly, "You think there's more than one?"

"There's no way of knowing yet." Bella answered softly, trying to make the situation seem less daunting, but she knew that no matter what she said or how she said it, being stalked and attacked by bloodthirsty, anonymous vampires can only be terrifying. Especially for a human.

Stefan's worrisome eyes looked up at his best friend, "Bella, he was _invited_ in." he emphasised, and the vampire nodded her head understandably. It wasn't like Elena was even safe in her own house anymore, they couldn't stay there, they couldn't leave her there, the vampire would just come back when she was unprotected and the girl would be dead within seconds. They had to do something _now_.

Bella knew that Stefan was anxious, concerned for the life of his girlfriend, but she also knew he wasn't going to like what she was going to say. Her and Damon shared a glance, the look in his blue eyes telling her he was thinking the same thing, and he turned to his brother, deciding to take the high road with this idea.

"Then we go get him tonight," he shrugged, standing up from his seat on the arm of the couch and standing beside Bella. Elena snapped her neck up at his suggestion. "You up for it?"

"What do I have to do?"

"Let Stefan take you to the dance. See who shows up." Bella explained.

The younger Salvatore shook his head, shocked that his best friend would even suggest something so dangerous. "It's a bad idea," he disagreed. Bella crossed her arms over her chest, stealing a look at Damon for back up as she began trying to convince Stefan to concur with soft green eyes.

"It's the best one we've got," she began, "You said it yourself, he was invited in. Until we catch the guy, this house isn't safe. Not _just_ for Elena."

"It's worth a shot," Damon added.

Their words seemed to strike a cord in Elena, she sat up confidently, taking a deep breath. "I'll do it." she agreed, and Bella and Damon nodded thankfully. She caught Stefan's worried expression, taking his hand to reassure him. "I'll be with the three of you. I'll be safe."

The three vampires shared a knowing look, mostly concern on Stefan's part, before they all left to make their way to the high school.

* * *

Loud fifties music and laughing was all they could hear as Bella, Damon, Stefan and Elena entered the heavily decorated gym, filled to the brim with dancing teenagers having the time of their lives and chaperones desperately waiting to go home. 

Bella scanned the room, not noticing anything out of the ordinary or concerning, until her eye caught a fairly good-looking guy with light hair giving a harsh glare in their direction. She looked directly back at him, but his blue eyes didn't rip from his gaze, and she followed their direction with her own green ones, squinting suspiciously when she realised he was giving Damon a death stare. When she turned back to the man, he was distracted, speaking with a pretty bronze-haired woman. Thinking it was just nothing, Bella shook off her instincts, watching Elena migrate over to her friends, who she recognised as Caroline Forbes and Bonnie Bennett. Stefan also disappeared somewhere into the crowd.

Damon tilted his head to Bella to let her know he was talking to her, "So, what was your favourite decade?" he asked playfully, not making eye contact as he continued surveying the room.

"Any that I didn't spend with you," she quipped, folding her arms over her chest.

"Come on, answer it." he pleaded, giving her a once over, discreetly scanning her outfit that hugged her body tightly, accentuating her curves in all the right places.

"Okay, well, you're gonna think it's because of you, when it's certainly not. But the twenties," she revealed, earning a deliberate, flirtatious glare from the dark-haired vampire. "Nothing like preying on the innocent at prohibited clubs and drinking illegal alcohol to my heart's content."

"You're sure that's the only reason."

"Mhm, positive." Bella affirmed, crossing her arms over her chest, avoiding eye contact with him. "Go on then, Salvatore, what was your favourite decade?"  
Damon looked over the red-haired vampire again, licking his lips slightly as his eyes trailed down from her collarbones, her cleavage, her arms, hips, thighs and slowly all the way back up again. He wasn't blind; though his heart still belonged to Katherine, he truly thought that Bella was one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen in the 170 years he'd been on this earth.

Beautiful, but annoying.

"Fifties." he stated simply, averting his eyes away from her body and back to cesspool of joyful teenagers.

"Any particular reason?" she asked curiously, turning to him again. Then he visibly craned his neck, deliberately checking her out from behind and raising his brows in approval.

"Well, if you were dressed like that the whole time-" he began, chuckling as the vampire turned a shade of red darker than her hair, swatting his shoulder harshly. It was a ridiculously inappropriate comment to be making with Stefan in the room, but the music was loud and his teasing was merely a whisper, and Bella tried to suppress her laughter, selecting instead to roll her eyes at Damon and make her way over to Stefan, who she spotted at the drinks stand.

"You know, I think everyone is forgetting all of the bad stuff that happened during this era," Bella complained, catching her friend's attention. She crossed her arms, moving to stand beside him as he poured some punch into a plastic cup. "I mean, the strict gender roles, segregation, the Cold War.."

Stefan merely shrugged, "A lot of people prefer to ignore it. Makes them feel better, to just think about the good stuff."

"Like _poodle skirts_?" she suggested sarcastically, scrutinising a few of the teenage girls wearing long baby pink skirts similar to what she had seen women walking down the streets wearing almost sixty years ago. "God, definitely _not_ worth bringing those back."

"I _wish_ I had seen you during this decade." Stefan thought out loud, laughing at her distaste for the period.

Bella just scowled, brows furrowing. She shook off the thoughts of Benjamin and the discrimination and the sexism. Now wasn't the time to be getting emotional and sentimental. "Well, you're not missing out on much. Had my flip switched after three years of it, remember?" she reminded, and Stefan made a face of realisation. He was about to start a new conversation, so that Bella wouldn't have to brood too much over a severely depressing time in her life, but she perked herself up, quickly snatching the fresh cup of punch out of his hand and downing it before he could complain.

The younger Salvatore gave her a disappointed look once she placed it back in his grasp with a wry grin. "That was for Elena..." he sighed, chucking the empty beverage into the trash bin behind them.

Bella rolled her eyes at his helplessness, snatching a new plastic cup from the table and pouring another drink for the human. "Then how about I'll bring her a new one, then?" she proposed, scanning the room for Elena, spotting her standing at the same table she'd seen her at last, still accompanied by Bonnie and Caroline. Before Stefan could reply, the redhead was weaving her way through the hormonal, grooving humans towards his girlfriend.

"Hey, Elena. Here," the vampire greeted, handing the girl the drink she had poured with a warm smile. Elena returned a friendly look, thanking Bella before noticing her two human friends giving the unfamiliar woman suspicious eyes.

Caroline didn't hesitate to start questioning her friend's new red-haired companion, "Um, who are you, exactly?" she asked, with a tone that was indecipherable between rude and curious.

"Oh, right. Bella these are my friends, Bonnie and Caroline," Elena explained, pointing to each respective girl when introducing them. Bella, of course, already knew who both of the teenagers were, she was there the night that Emily had possessed the witch, even managing to save her life from Damon, but they'd never officially, personally _met_ ; Caroline was different, they'd interacted on two separate occasions, but the vampire's compulsion erased her memory of it, so it didn't really count. "This is Bella, uh, Stefan's friend."

"Oh, you're friends with Stefan?" Caroline repeated intriguingly, cocking her head slightly to the side. "So are you, like, a new student or...?"

Bella shook her head, screwing up her face at the thought of actually going to high school. She applauded and admired Stefan for attempting to live out a normal teenage life: going to classes and doing schoolwork, even attending the dances, but it just wasn't for her. Sure, she'd attended college, more times than she could count - high school, however, was a futile plan. Plus, she'd been twenty one years old for the last three hundred years; it would just be plain creepy. At least Stefan was still technically seventeen.

"God, _no_ ," the redhead replied, "No, no. Stefan and I have just known each other a... long time." Caroline nodded at her explanation, as if she were deeming it acceptable, eyes trailing off to find Stefan approaching Elena, apologetically drawing the human away from her friends to speak to her about something in private, leaving Bella, Caroline and Bonnie alone.

"So, um, Bella, where are you from?" Bonnie asked politely, making small talk.

"New Orleans, originally. But I travel a lot, don't really like staying in one place." Bella admitted, giving the witch a small smile. She could tell she was trying to place her face, gazing at the vampire with suspicion lacing her olive eyes. Caroline let out a frustrated sigh, watching Damon chat up a young, pretty student with a smug look from across the room.

"God, you know, he's just so..." she groaned, trying to find the right words to encapsulate how she felt about the vampire.

Bella scoffed, following her gaze with her arms crossed over her chest and an unimpressed look at the man who seemed to make his life's mission to make hers a living hell. "Arrogant? Insensitive? Awful? I could go on," she listed, earning an approving smile from both teenagers.

"And I think _you're_ my new best friend."

The three of them let out an airy laugh at Caroline's joke, and Bella was about to respond until the blonde teenager's face dropped and she shifted uncomfortably. The vampire felt someone's presence behind her, quickly turning to be met with Damon Salvatore himself approaching the three and gesturing to the young witch beside her.

"Hi, Bonnie," the dark-haired vampire greeted in his fakest, nicest voice, even painting a smile across his lips. Bonnie turned to the sound of his voice, a look of disgust immediately settling over her expression. "Wanna dance?"

Her tone was laced with revulsion, giving him the evil eye. "I'm outta here," she uttered, attempting to walk away, but Damon stepped in front of her, gently placing a hand on her elbow to pull her back.

" _Please_ give me another chance," he begged, watching the witch scorn at him dangerously, ignoring his pleas and brushing past them. Suddenly, as she walked past, someone barged past her, making her stumble into Bella's arm clumsily and make contact with the vampire. 

Instantly, a flash of visions overwhelmed Bonnie, causing her to harshly close her eyes like a bright light corrupted her eyesight. She could only make out a handful of images: dark skin littered with blood and bruises, dazzling stars scattered over a night sky, white fangs and hard veins, icy blue eyes, soft golden hair in the wind. Shaking her head, Bonnie blinked her eyes back open, seeing Bella, Damon and Caroline glancing over at her with concern.

"You okay, Bonnie?" the redhead asked, confused. The young witch merely smiled, muttering an apology before storming away with a shaking head.

Caroline ignored her weird outburst, "Back off, Damon," she sternly warned. After, she gave Bella a friendly smile and followed after her best friend through the crowd.

Damon's eyes followed after them dejectedly, a tight line forming over his lips. Bella leaned onto the table, seeing Elena and Stefan approach the two arm in arm, their gaze also watching the two irritated girls leave.

"Where did they go?" Elena asked him curiously, flickering her eyes to Bella, who merely shook her head.

The male vampire kept his cool, casually replying, "I don't know."

Stefan gave him a doubtful shrug, "What'd you say to 'em?" he asked his older brother, not an ounce of trust in his tone.

"What didn't he say to them?" Bella scoffed.

"I was perfectly polite," he lied, turning his gaze to his brother's girlfriend with a small smile over his face, "Elena, would _you_ like to dance?"

The human gave him a genuine smile, "I would _love_ to," she agreed, earning an arrogant scoff from the older Salvatore trying to rub it in his little brother's face. She then turned to Stefan, stroking his arm gently before continuing, "May I have this dance?"

Bella began giggling uncontrollably, watching as Elena jokingly raised her eyebrows up at Damon and being led onto the dance floor by a smiling Stefan. The male vampire turned to Bella, glaring dangerously at her unruly laughter, making her stop and pout sarcastically.

"Three girls in one night. Wow, that must be some kind of record." the redhead mocked, watching him roll his eyes in defeat. Then, he extended a hand out to her.

"Anabella, would _you_ like to dance?" he offered formally, keeping sultry eye contact with her. Bella widened her eyes, her instincts telling her to go for it but the realising she was the last person he had asked. She crossed her arms over her chest, looking up at him in disbelief.

"No," she denied simply. Damon's face dropped irritably, letting his hand fall back down to his side. "It really took you three girls to reject you for you to even consider me? That's harsh."

Damon eyed her, trying to figure out what game she was playing. He just let out a sigh, standing beside her with arms crossed, "You know what they say, save the best for last," he flirted, craning his neck down to look at her again. Bella returned his gaze, feeling charming icy eyes roaming her features. "Come on, you love dancing!" She sighed again, wanting to take his offer, but she refused once more.

"Nope, sorry, go and find some innocent teenage girl to compel instead," she spat bitterly, "So what are you, a paedophile now? I went to law school once and they taught me that dating minors is illegal."

"Nothing is illegal for vampires, honey," Damon leaned down to whisper the words into her ear. A shiver ran down her spine, but Bella rolled her eyes and shook it off, giving the vampire a menacing glare.

"You know I eat paedophiles in my spare time, right?"

Damon merely scoffed at her empty threat, observing the crowd. In all honestly, Bella had almost forgotten the main reason she'd even come to the dance in the first place - the bloodthirsty vampire going after Elena. She kept her eye out, smiling at the sight of Stefan and Elena joyfully dancing to the upbeat music. Just as she went to say something to Damon, a fair-haired man wearing a red letter man jacket approached the two with an innocent smile. The same man she'd seen giving Damon a death glare when they first arrived at the dance.

"Hey, I don't recognise you. How'd you get roped into chaperoning?" the human began. Confused, Damon glanced at Bella, then back at the man, who continued to introduce himself. "Alaric Saltzman, I'm the new history teacher."

The vampire politely shook the teacher's hand, "Ah, the, uh, cursed faculty position," he commented, earning a weird look from the female beside him.

"So I've been told."

"Damon. Salvatore." he introduced, turning his attention back out to the room, continuing his discreet observation for anything suspicious. Though Bella had her eye on the human beside them, something about him felt off and she was determined to figure it out. Catching her gaze, Alaric held his hand out to the female vampire as well, and she took it graciously.

"Bella King," she stated, letting go of the man's hand and crossing her arms. He nodded, then turned his attention back to Damon, obviously having more questions.

"So, Salvatore. As in, uh, Stefan?" Bella's ears pricked up at the mention of her best friend.

"He's my little brother," Damon disclosed, "I'm his legal guardian, hence the chaperoning."

"I hear he's very bright, not that I've had the chance to see for myself."

"Well, his attendance record's a little spotty. Family drama," the dark-haired vampire gave the teacher a curt nod.

"No parents?" Alaric asked curiously. Bella furrowed her brows at him, looking down at the floor. He sure seemed to ask a lot of questions. Damon didn't seem fazed, humming in response.

"Mm, it's just the two of us now," he replied, then nodding his head in Bella's direction, "And, Bella, here, of course."

The redhead straightened her head up at him, then turned to the teacher, who looked at her curiously. "Yeah, me and Stefan have been friends since... as long as I can remember," Bella explained obscurely, "Hence, chaperoning." She looked up at Damon as she plagiarised his words. Alaric nodded, seeming to believe her half-lie, changing the subject.

"You, uh, you live here your whole life?" He appeared to be ridiculously engrossed in learning about the Salvatores and their history, and it started bothering Bella slightly. Is he just nosy or is he up to something? She furrowed her brows at him.

"On and off, travel a bit," she could tell his questions were starting to get to Damon, he avoided eye contact as much as he could with the teacher, giving him blunt answers, hoping he'd drop it to go bother someone else.

"Really? Where? Around the states?" Bella and Damon glanced at him, unimpressed at his interrogating, but the teacher just let out an awkward laugh, "Heh, I'm sorry. I'm nosy, I-I don't mean to pry. Look, it was nice meeting you both."

"You too," both vampires replied, still holding their wary expressions. Alaric placed a friendly hand to the redhead's shoulder, before leaving the two and disappearing into the crowd of teenagers.

Bella groaned, rolling her eyes when she saw he was far enough away that the human wouldn't hear her. Both vampires gave each other a knowing look. "There is definitely something up with that guy." she commented, earning a nod in agreement from Damon.

"For sure."

* * *

A while after their encounter with the new, suspicious, albeit moderately handsome history teacher, Damon abandoned Bella to quite inappropriately dance with one of the teenage girls, leaving Bella to patrol by herself as Stefan and Elena stayed on the dance floor. 

The red-haired vampire wandered amongst the chattering teenagers, catching whispers of gossip and jokes, making her way over to the drink stand. There was no alcohol, and she wouldn't dare to risk getting caught feeding on one of the students, so punch was going to have to curb her cravings for now, until she could get her hands on a glass of bourbon or a blood bag back at the Salvatore House.

Once she reached the punch bowl, she grabbed a cup and poured the ruby liquid in, quickly downing the drink and fixing herself another. Suddenly, she heard a soft laugh and a sweet voice beside her, taking a glance to find the pretty bronze-haired woman that she'd seen talking to Alaric when they first arrived. Perhaps she'd be helpful trying to figure out what he's up to.

"I didn't know the punch was _that_ good," the woman joked, a pleasant smile adorned on her face. Bella laughed, looking down at her second cup of punch.

"Well, it's no Cabernet but it'll have to do," she quipped back quickly, earning a laugh from the human.

"I hear ya," she agreed, slowly shaking her head, then looking back up at the redhead. "I'm Jenna. Sommers."

Bella nodded, smiling. "Anabella King. But you can call me Bella." she introduced kindly, shaking the woman's extended hand.

"I haven't seen you around," Jenna pointed out, seeming genuinely curious and not suspicious like the busybody history teacher, "Which one is yours?" She observed the mob of rowdy teenagers, trying to spot any that she didn't recognise.

Bella shook her head, waving a hand out in denial, "God, none of them. I'm here with Stefan Salvatore. You might know him?"

"Oh, Stefan! He's dating my niece, Elena Gilbert," the bronze-haired woman revealed, earning a surprised look from the female vampire.

" _You're_ Elena's aunt?" Bella returned, looking her up and down with an approving smile across her face. She'd learned a little about the teenager's past from Stefan when she arrived in Mystic Falls: Elena's parents passed away in a car crash, and she was the only one to survive, leaving her and her younger brother, Jeremy Gilbert - who Bella was still yet to meet - in the care of their mother's sister, Jenna Sommers.

Jenna gestured to herself proudly, a tight grin over her face. "In the flesh."

"Wow, Stefan told me about what happened, I'm so sorry for your loss." she consoled with an apologetic smile. The bronze-haired woman's bright face flickered slightly, before picking herself back up, as if trying to shake off the memory of her dead sister. Bella sympathised with her, she knew all too well how hard it was to lose someone that you love, especially a sibling. "I know it might not mean anything coming from a stranger."

"No, it's fine, really. Thank you," Jenna smiled, looking to change the subject, "So how long have you been in Mystic Falls?"

"Just a couple of days. I came back to celebrate Stefan's birthday, but plans changed and I decided to stay for a while," Bella explained casually, taking small sips from her cup. Jenna nodded as she spoke, seeming sincerely interested in what she had to say, something that was hard to find in humans these days. It's like over the years, they'd become more and more self-centred. But she could tell from what little conversation they had so far that Jenna wasn't that type of person.

"Well, I can tell you this town is as boring as it can get," the woman joked again, pouring herself a drink. "How do you know Stefan, then?"

"It's a long story, I found him during a... rough stage in his life and we've been pretty much stuck with each other ever since. He's like my little brother." 

Jenna held a warm smile, humming in agreement, "Well, from what little information Elena gives me, he's got some family problems? Something about an older brother... I don't really remember."

Nodding disappointingly, Bella sighed. " _Damon_ , yeah. Not the poster child for supportive, loving siblings. More like an arrogant pest who makes it his life's mission to make everyone's lives miserable. Some friendly advice? Fight shy of Damon Salvatore."

"Don't have to tell me twice," the human shook her head, taking a sip from her drink. Bella could tell it wasn't nearly strong enough for her taste buds. "I've had my fair share of scumbags to last an eternity."

"Amen, sister," Bella chuckled, toasting her plastic cup against Jenna's. Little did the human know, her new red-haired friend would actually be living for that long. The vampire tried to swerve the conversation, wanting to learn a little more about her relationship with the suspicious man her and Damon had spoken to earlier. "But the new history teacher is pretty hot, I have to admit."

Jenna froze slightly, eyes widening at the mention of Jeremy's teacher who she'd not so discreetly been crushing on since she laid eyes on him. She let out a breathy laugh, "Alaric Saltzman? Yeah, he's pretty cute."

The red-haired vampire took a drink from her cup, acting interested in the human. "What's his deal? I mean, is he single?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at Jenna.  
Flustered, the human shrugged, glancing over in the direction of the history teacher. Sure, she'd been crushing on him, and they've spoken quite a lot, but they haven't even gone out on a real date, so technically he was still single. Jenna looked back up at the redhead, "Uh, yeah. Widower." she said shortly, feeling a little awkward as she sipped from her cup.

"Ah, I see." Bella replied, sensing the woman feeling slightly uncomfortable at her sudden interest in the man. _Oh, she likes him_ , she thought, gently bumping her hip into Jenna's with a mischievous grin playing on her lips. "Not really my type then. But what about you?"

The human blushed, hiding a bashful smile with her plastic cup, and shaking her head. "I don't know. He's cute, we get along really well, and he's not boring like all the other guys in this town."

"So what's holding you back?" Bella encouraged. Although she didn't particularly trust Alaric, she did believe that Jenna seemed to be deserving of happiness, and if that was with some cute but creepy history teacher who was definitely hiding something, then so be it. Jenna smiled to herself, almost like she was weighing out the pros and cons of Bella's advice in her head.

The red-haired vampire spotted Stefan and Elena over by one of the tables. It had been a while since she'd checked in with them. Bella gave Jenna a warm smile, placing a friendly, gentle hand on the human's arm, "I need to go speak to Stefan about something, but it was _really_ nice meeting you, Jenna."

Nodding, Jenna beamed back, "You too, Bella. I'll see you around." was all she said, before both women went their separate ways.

Bella avoided the dancing and laughing teenagers as she made her way across the dance floor with a cup of punch in her hand. Finally, she reached the table Elena and Stefan had situated themselves at.

"Hey, you seen anything suspicious yet?" Stefan asked quietly, just low enough for the female vampire to hear underneath the loud pop music echoing through the gym. Bella shook her head and drank from her cup.

"Nada," she said, "But I did have a _lovely_ conversation with one Miss Jenna Sommers."

Elena turned to Bella, a surprised look on her face at the mention of her aunt. "You spoke to Jenna?" the human asked curiously.

"Oh, yeah. We're _total_ best friends now," Bella joked, letting out an airy giggle. Elena raised her brows in approval, nodding to the revelation.

"She could use one, to be honest. Jenna spends so much time working and looking after me and Jeremy, it would be nice for her to actually have some friends her age..." she trailed off, realising that the red-haired vampire was actually hundreds of years older than her aunt, "Well, you know what I mean."

The three of them laughed, and Elena turned to look back out at the dance floor only to find Damon dancing in a wildly inappropriate fashion with a blonde girl she recognised from one of her classes. She scoffed, turning to Bella and Stefan to comment. "You really can't take him anywhere, can you?"

The two vampires followed her gaze. Bella rolled her eyes at her frenemy's misbehaviour, all the while Stefan just shook his head in disappointment he felt all to often toward his brother. "Uh, no," he shortly replied to his girlfriend.

Quickly tapping Elena's arm to get her attention, Bella raised her eyebrows at the teenager. "You think _this_ is bad? One time during the Prohibition era, we went out and he managed to make out with fifty-two separate women. _Fifty-two_!" she stressed in disgust, watching the teenager's face screw up judgmentally, looking back over at the dark-haired vampire.

Stefan, however, furrowed his brows in confusion, his tone slightly accusational as he asked, "Prohibition? No, _we_ were in Chicago in the twenties, Bella-" he began questioning, and Bella suddenly grew nervous. He didn't know that she'd actually spent half of the 1920's with his older brother, but before she could come up with an excuse, Elena thankfully interrupted, her body stiff and she swallowed nervously.

"Stefan," she ordered, leaning in to her boyfriend to whisper to them, "The back corner."

Both vampires were torn from their potentially explosive conversation, trailing their eyes across the heavily decorated gymnasium to spot a chilling figure adorned in a black hoodie floating around the back of the room like a ghost. They put their talk to the side for the moment, giving each other a knowing nod, before Stefan set off to follow the shady looking silhouette.

Bella turned to Elena, who was growing anxious, giving her stern instructions. "Elena, you stay here, do _not_ move. I'll get Damon." she ordered, giving the teenager no time to reply or argue and storming off in Damon's direction.

Whimpering, the random human girl was harshly torn from the dark-haired vampire's dishonourable grasp by the elbow, being forced to fall into Bella, who stared coldly into her doe eyes. "Go find your friends. Be disappointed in yourself that you'd let a twenty-four year old man handle your ass like that," she compelled cruelly, watching the teenager's face drop and mechanically walk away from Damon, who was looking Bella over with uncertainty.

He merely shrugged off her weird behaviour, grabbing the female vampire's wrist and pulling her into him before she could react, swaying her side to side as he started to mock her. "If you wanted to dance with me, you could have just accepted my previous offer." he flirted shamelessly, blue eyes skimming her body.

The redhead scoffed, pushing Damon's hands away and disconnecting them, much to his chagrin. "Get over yourself, I don't have time for your games right now. We have _company_."

With her words, Damon straightened up, a more solemn and concerned expression settling over his face. "Where?" he asked darkly.

"Stefan's gone after him," Bella explained quietly, pushing past a few teenagers to get to Elena, Damon following closely behind her. She froze in place, seeing her best friend's girlfriend was no where to be found in the vicinity that she left her. The dark-haired vampire grew impatient, his eyes searching around the room.

"Where's Elena?" Stefan's voice came, jogging up beside the two with his brows furrowed.

"I told her to stay right there!" the redhead strained, pointing to the table that Elena had been told to stand. She gave Stefan a deeply apologetic look, before realising he was supposed to be going after the hooded threat in the first place. "Wait, what are you doing? What happened to the guy in the hood?"

Stefan sighed, "It was a decoy, someone compelled a kid-"

"To distract us," Bella finished, eyes widening in shock, glancing between the two male vampires, who came to the same realisation.

The three vampires quickly made their way through the more empty halls of the school. Suddenly, they heard a loud shriek coming from a room at the end of one of the corridors, and Stefan wasted no time with human speed, flashing down to the door, slinging them open with Damon and Bella merely seconds behind him. He reached Elena just in time, ripping a menacing vampire with his fangs bared and veins hardened, off of his girlfriend and mercilessly throwing him across a lunch table.

Bella slammed the doors behind her, echoing the sound through the halls and watched the unknown vampire speed up from the ground unharmed. She took a dangerous stance beside Damon, who had a sharp, stake-like piece of wood in his hand.

"Hey, dickhead," he called out, catching the threatening vampire's attention, and holding his hands up in surrender. Bella, however kept her arms crossed, an unimpressed scowl etched over her features. "Nobody wants to kill you. We just wanna talk."

With a menacing grin, the vampire ignored Damon's offer, leaping over one of the tables towards Elena. But he wasn't fast enough, and Bella rolled her eyes as Damon rapidly flung the wood over to Stefan, who caught it effortlessly in his hand and shoved the makeshift stake directly into the vampire's chest before he could barely reach Elena.  
He fell to his knees, a muffled groan escaping his chest, panting in pure pain. Honestly, being staked sucked; it was probably the worst physical pain Bella had ever experienced, human or vampire - and this asshole definitely deserved it. 

"Now you feel like talking?" the red-haired vampire taunted, hearing her heels click against the linoleum floor as her and Damon made their way over to face the injured vampire.

"Screw you," he choked out in response, causing Bella to squint her eyes at him. She looked between Damon and Stefan for a moment, before pouting sarcastically at the vampire. Within a second, her hand flashed down to the wooden pole protruding out of his chest, the other roughly gripping his shoulder, and she brutally plunged the stake further into his flesh, most likely just about grazing the delicate heart. Bella's hot breath fanned over the male vampire, cocking an eyebrow at the pathetic, strained whines falling from his mouth.

The female vampire grinned sadistically at the vacant expression of pain in his face. "Wrong answer, baby," she chimed with faux concern, purposefully pushing down just slightly on the stake so that it barely stroked his most important organ.

Bella stood up, backing away from Elena's attacker to stand adjacent to Damon. Unbeknown to her, he gave her a quick once over, admiring the twisted, torturous side of her that reminded him of the times they spent terrorising innocent humans together. He turned his attention to Stefan, however, who began aggressively interrogating the creature trying to kill his beloved girlfriend.

"Why are you doing this?" the younger Salvatore spat, taking it upon himself to grab the wood, threatening to push it in further if he didn't get the answers he wanted.

Making eye contact with his torturer, the vampire gave a callous grin, before simply replying. "Because it's fun."

Damon and Bella winced disgustedly at his reason, watching Stefan thrust the stake deeper and harder into the vampire's chest, most likely chafing harshly against his heart by now.

"What do you want with Elena?" he breathed out harshly, ignoring the whimpers and the squelch of the man's flesh against the wood. The vampire looked up from the floor at Elena, who was holding herself anxiously, disliking his menacing gaze as he spoke.

"She looks like Katherine."

Bella, Stefan and Elena all glanced over to Damon, who gave the vampire a suspicious glare. "You knew Katherine?" he asked, arms crossed over his chest.

The wounded vampire let out a gasping laugh. "Oh, you thought you were the only ones. You don't even remember me."

Damon ignored his comments, kneeling down to the man's eyeline with a threatening glare. "Tell me how to get into the tomb."

"No."

To Bella's surprise, Stefan suddenly leaned down and shoved the stick harder into the vampire's chest, his groans echoing through the room. The redhead inched closer to them, wanting to get into the action a little more.

"The grimoire." he choked out, struggling for breath against the dry timber threatening to desiccate his entire body.

"Where is it?" Damon hissed. Opting to stay quiet, the vampire felt Stefan's hand on him again, and heard the sizzling mangling of his own flesh.

"Check the journal. The journal." he gasped, "Jonathan's journal. Jonathan Gilbert's."

Bella furrowed her brows at the familiar surname, turning to the revolted, fearful teenager behind them, who looked just as shocked and confused as the vampires. After a glance at Stefan and Damon, the redhead continued their interrogation. 

"Who else are you working with?" she demanded, craning her neck down at the disadvantaged vampire, her emerald eyes laced with fire. But he stayed silent once again.  
Damon exclaimed, "Who else is there?"

"No. You're gonna have to kill me."

Bella huffed frustratedly, running a hand over her face. He thinks they won't. He thinks they'll have pity on him, let him go with a warning and a slap on the wrist. _Fat chance_. Damon rolled his eyes, shaking his head as him and Bella shared a sour glance; he gestured to the inconvenient vampire, waiting for her to finish the job. 

With no hesitation, the red-haired vampire reached down to his chest, ripping the stake harshly from his flesh. Flipping it quickly in her hand, Bella painted a dark smile over her lips that matched the glowering twinkle in her green eyes, before flashing the honed, blood-soaked plank directly into his heart, hearing the loud squelch of the organ swiftly desiccating. Gurgles erupted from the vampire's mouth, his body slowly becoming rigid, and she took a small step away, letting go of the fatal stake and allowing him to drop to his side. In the blink of an eye, his skin grew grey and decaying, and hard veins scattered across his face and neck. He was dead.

A surge of adrenaline shivered through Bella's spine, her breathing grew heavy and deep as she kept a blank stare at the desiccated body lying before her, ignoring Elena's anxious panting. It's been a while since she'd killed someone - sure, she'd fed on humans a few times a week when she didn't have a blood bag, but she always left them breathing, alive. But now, seeing someone cold, numb, dead, even if it was just a bloodthirsty vampire trying to kill her friend, crippled against the icy linoleum floor, unable to think, speak or move sent a wave through her body. Yet, it wasn't fear, or guilt, or sadness. No, it was something much more terrifying and dangerous. It was amusement. Happiness. _Pleasure_.

"What do we- How are you gonna find the others now?" Elena puffed.

"He had to die." Bella stated blankly, turning her head to eye the teenager over her shoulder. 

Panic and realisation settling over her, Elena tried defying them, sputtering out useless words before Stefan turned to her, with a stern look on his face. "Elena, he's been invited in." he explained softly. 

A loud clunk echoed into the room, alerting the three vampires and the human to look over at the doors. Bella spotted a dark figure passing the window, and she looked back to Stefan, who nodded toward the door to signal her and Damon to investigate.

"Go. I got this." 

With his permission, Bella and Damon wasted no time swiftly jogging out of the room to spot none other than Alaric Saltzman, of course, hurriedly making his way down the hall back to the party. Upon seeing him, Damon flashed over directly in front of the teacher, making him stop in his tracks.

Bella rolled her eyes, copying Damon's movements and appearing beside the dark-haired vampire with folded arms. Alaric cleared his throat, nervous eyes flickering between the two. "Hey." he greeted shortly.

"What were you doing?" Damon asked him impatiently, deciding to skip the unnecessary pleasantries and go straight to the interrogation. The human straightened up, looking the dark-haired vampire directly in the eyes.

"Looking for Ms. Hilden."

Icy blue eyes contracted and expanded, seizing Alaric's eyes in an unbreakable gaze as Damon compelled him. "Why are you in Mystic Falls?"

The human's answers came out in mechanical whispers, replying, "Got a job as a teacher."

"Do you know what I am?"

"You're my student's brother."

"Is everything you're telling me the truth?"

"Yes."

"Then forget we had this conversation."

Damon ended the compulsion, tilting his head to Bella, who was still squinting suspiciously at the human, and patted Alaric gently on the shoulder, before they both brushed past him to walk back down the school halls.

Unknown to both vampires, Alaric let out a shaky breath that he'd held in since Damon and Bella appeared in front of him. Then looking down at his hand, he slowly opened his fingers, revealing a small purple plant practically crushed up in the palm of his hand.

Vervain.

* * *

"I need to talk to you," Stefan sighed softly, pulling at Bella's arm lightly as she tried to leave Elena's porch. She looked up at him with furrowed brows, moving back to in front of the door to face her friend. "I made a deal with Damon."

The red-haired vampire took a double take with wide green eyes. Her face read pure confusion, wondering why her best friend would make a deal with his brother who he claimed to hate so much. More importantly, she was wondering if she was going to have to help or not. She was hoping for the latter, to be honest. "What kind of deal?" Bella asked.

"I told him I would help him open the tomb," he revealed, keeping stern eye contact with his friend. "To get Katherine back."

Bella felt her face drop, shaking her head and placing her hand up to cup her own ear. She must have heard him wrong. "I'm sorry, _what_?"

"But I lied," Stefan carried on, making the red-haired vampire even more perplexed. She merely blinked up at the younger Salvatore, waiting for him to further explain his point. "I know you don't want Katherine out of that tomb just as much as I don't, so we won't let her even have the chance. And that chance is Damon. But I need your help."

The redhead's face softened, "Okay. I trust that you know what you're doing. What do you need me to do?"

Stefan sighed again, giving Bella an apologetic look. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I need you to get information out of Damon. Things I won't be able to get out of him."

"What makes you think he'll tell me of all people? We're not exactly the best of friends." Bella scoffed.

"But you used to be." Stefan reminded, "Please, Bella. All you have to do is make peace with him, for now. Be nice to him, bad mouth him. Whatever you need to do to gain his trust."

Running her tongue over her teeth, the red-haired vampire stared off in thought. Lying to Damon didn't bother her, it wasn't the first time she'd had to and it certainly won't be the last for the rest of their miserable eternity, so she wondered why she felt a tiny slither of guilt nagging at the back of her head. It give her a bad feeling, one she didn't want to welcome with open arms, instead shoving it down, deep inside her somewhere that she couldn't reach. There was nothing to feel guilty about; in fact, she could even count it as revenge. Bella had barely been in town for three days and he'd already created lies and destruction: keeping the death of her best friend a secret, almost murdering an innocent girl, snapping her neck and taking her on an unwanted road trip. Worst of all, was Katherine. Still, after a century and a half, he chose Katherine over her. And it made Bella's blood boil.

"I'll handle it." she said shortly, shaking her head at him. "God, the things I do for you, Stefan Salvatore."

The younger vampire gave her a small, grateful smile, and Bella nodded back to him. She quickly turned on her heel, without exchanging another word, clicking her fifties boots along the porch of the Gilbert house. Stefan watched her dark figure disappear into the night.

* * *

Entering the Salvatore Boarding House, Bella felt the pleasant warmth of the fireplace immediately after gently closing the front door and walking through the foyer. It had been a tiring day. Well, since she'd arrived in Mystic Falls it had been pretty chaotic and Bella thought it could only get worse from here - and that notion kind of scared the hell out of her.

The red-haired vampire walked into the parlour, heading straight for the decanter of bourbon practically calling her name. Like it was second nature, Bella picked up a glass and poured the alcohol in, swirling it around a little before taking a small sip. She let out a soft sigh, taking the rest of her hair down and allowing the fiery cascade spill around her shoulders; she let her hand rake through the loose curls, softly massaging her own head

She thought about what Stefan had said to her earlier as she slowly drank the bourbon. Maybe he was right. Damon did trust her, _once upon a time_ , and though they had grown to barely like each other, she was sure, or rather, hoping, that there could be just a shred of humanity left in him that still cared for her. Though she knew it was doubtful. Ever since he left Mystic Falls in 1865, it had always been Katherine. He was in love with her, and no matter how many times she tried, Bella couldn't change that. She wasn't so sure she ever could.

But now, Stefan needed her, Elena needed her, and so did Mystic Falls. Katherine and the other twenty-six vampires will tear it apart piece by piece until it's left to nothing but shreds. No matter what repressed feelings she had for him, Bella couldn't let him get his way this time.

And as if right on cue, Damon Salvatore himself stepped into the parlour as Bella took her last sip of bourbon. He paused in the doorway for a second, the two vampires making brisk eye contact, before rolled his eyes at the glass in her hand. "Are you gonna make a habit out of helping yourself to my stuff?" he asked scornfully, slowly making his way over to the redhead.

Bella let out a sarcastic laugh through her nose, looking down at her glass. When Damon reached her, he took the bourbon and poured himself a glass, and then looked over at the red-haired vampire, reluctantly refilling her glass despite his complaints. The vampires sipped the brown liquid silently, until Damon piped up.

"What happened to you earlier?" he asked mysteriously, eyes raking over her face, searching her deep green eyes for truth. Bella merely scrunched her nose, unfazed.

"What?"

"When you staked douchebag. Something happened, like you froze." Damon inspected, causing the red-haired vampire to widen her eyes slightly. She didn't think it was that obvious, to anyone, let alone Damon. 

In all honesty, she did freeze. In a sense. For her, feeding was one thing, it was her second nature, part of who she was ever since she was turned, but she was in control of it. She'd feed until she needed to and still leave her victim somewhat unharmed and blissfully compelled. But killing was another thing. Actually stripping the life away from a human being - or, in this case, a vampire - struck something in her that she really didn't like. And that part of her was guiltless.

"No I didn't," Bella denied, ripping her green eyes from Damon's icy gaze to have another taste of her bourbon. The male vampire scoffed, copying her actions before pressing on.

"Liar."

"Seriously, it was nothing."

"I think you're underestimating how well I really know you, Bella." Damon raised his eyebrows, a small smirk playing on his lips. The redhead rolled her emerald eyes, staring down into her glass and swirling the brown liquid around.

"Actually, I think you're overestimating." Bella quipped, running her tongue over her teeth. 

The other vampire shook his head in disbelief, taking a large gulp of bourbon. Somehow he'd managed to shuffle closer to her, their bodies barely centimetres apart. "We both know that's a lie," he accused, "I can see right through you."

He was challenging her. Damon had been suspicious of her arrival ever since she knocked on the front door of the boarding house, and now he was trying to catch her in a lie. This is how she gained his trust - accepting his challenge and somehow managing to prove her invalid loyalty to him. And if three hundred years on this miserable, merciless earth taught Bella, it was how to be a good liar. But she still had to put up a fight to make it seem believable. She looked straight up at Damon, rolling her shoulders up assuredly, holding her bourbon upright in her hand with an arm crossed over her chest. With one eyebrow raised and nothing but confidence lacing her tone, she asked. "And what is it you see, Damon?"

The dark-haired vampire looked down his nose at her suspiciously, drinking his alcohol before answering blankly. "You're hiding something."

Bella merely scoffed, rolling her eyes at his bluntness and shaking her head. She assertively threw back the rest of her bourbon. "I don't have to tell you everything. Last time I checked you're not my boyfriend." she spat with pure venom.

Damon's eyes widened at her comment, the words echoing in his head but he shook them off. "Neither is Stefan, but he seems to know your secrets."

"Not all of them."

"Then give me the advantage."

"In your dreams." the red-haired vampire scoffed at his attempts. She slammed down the empty glass onto the table beside them, giving Damon a once over and he returned it, his signature flirtatious smirk painting over his lips with a certain twinkle in his icy eyes.

"Then we're naked." he practically growled, placing down his now-empty glass as well. Bella moved into him slightly, their faces barely inches from each other.

"We can make that a reality," she revealed lowly, subconsciously taking her bottom lip between her perfect teeth. Her eyes reflexively travelled down to his lips, making him smirk arrogantly. She looked back up at him through her eyelashes.

"I thought you were done playing my so-called ' _games_ '." Damon pointed out, not ripping his eyes from Bella's even for a second. He pulled his hand up beside her face, gently stroking his fingers against the smooth skin of her cheek, to which she involuntarily tilted her head into his touch. In a flash, her hand grabbed his wrist harshly and she pushed him over to the closest wall, his back flush against the wood and she edged closer to the side of his head, barely grazing the skin of his ear as she whispered seductively.

"Just because your games aren't fun doesn't mean I'm not going to play them."

With her suggestive words lingering in the air, Bella gave Damon one more look. She dropped his hand from her tight grasp, and turned to exit the parlour, swaying her hips as she walked. Before she even got to the doorway, she felt strong arms around her waist and suddenly she was on her back, being pushed down into a soft mattress by equally strong hands. Bella blinked at her surroundings. She was in his room. Damon was practically sneering above her, pinning her hands above her head and leaning down so that their faces were barely inches apart.

"Then let's see who wins."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> soooooo, learning a little more about bellas past :) i'm going to be doing some more flashbacks when they fit in right to help give u guys a little more backstory, because bella is one compicated (get it?) vampire. how we feeling about damon and bella? i told yall their relationship was gonna be complicated ! benjamin, too? and i thought jenna and bella becoming besties is such a cute idea !! anyways, i hope you enjoyed ! pls be sure to comment and give kudos if u did it really motivates me ! if you have any questions feel free to ask or suggestions, i like interacting ! also this story will be up on fanfiction.net (i don't even know if people still use that oops) and wattpad and my username for both are @/augustined- if you would prefer to read this there ! thank u for reading luvs <3


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